Lost in the Clouds
by olehoncho
Summary: On a mission deep inside the Lightning Country Kiba and Akamaru are separated from the rest of Team 8, and a strange chakra in the air prevents them from tracking. Karui, a local ninja, finds them lost but that is where problems really begin. KibaxKarui
1. Chapter 1

Kiba bent down to examine the ground at his feet and noticed Akamaru's paw print faintly in the hard dust. Standing he felt the rock wall to his left and found the mark he had made with his Kunai not ten minutes prior. Akamaru let out a low whine, and Kiba shook his head before agreeing,

"Yes, not only are we lost but we're also going in circles now." Kiba sighed before saying, "Come on Akamaru, let's try another way."

The large Ninken let out a confident bark, which helped raise Kiba's own spirits. It was Team Eight's first mission after they had been promoted to the Anbu corps, and not three days into the Lightning Country's territory and Kiba had gotten lost from his team mates Hinata and Shino. Kiba was not worried about their safety, as he knew them both to be perfectly capable ninja; neither was he concerned about the mission, as Hinata alone was more than capable of following a single courier to his destinations and report whom he was meeting with. Kiba learned long ago that keeping tabs on people is one of the most fundamental tasks in politics and subterfuge.

This new path was a mountain pass, right on the edge of a steep cliff. The river below had a swift current, but at this altitude it was avoiding the fall in that preoccupied Kiba's thoughts. A gust of wind brought more of that rolling mist that the land of lightning was famous for and an unsettling feeling came upon Kiba as it seemed to dull every scent around him. Were Akamaru not so close, he doubted he would be able even to smell his dog.

Kiba quickly removed his mask to wipe off the condensation, he was eager to put it back on. Early Autumns in Konoha were warm and Kiba remembered how uncomfortable the mask had felt during his summer training; but the Land of Lightning was in the north, and temperatures were colder here and the mask was a good shield against that.

After hours of traveling the narrow pass Kiba arrived at what seemed to be a niche carved into the side of the mountain. It was large enough to fit at least four tents, so Kiba figured it was a rest stop for any who traveled these paths. Going in Kiba found a small fire circle, though lacking wood Kiba would have to forego that luxury. The rock overhead proved to be most fortunate as the moment the sun set behind the western mountains, the clouds overhead gathered and a heavy rain began.

Pulling out his bedroll Kiba laid himself on top of it and went to sleep. His dreams were uneasy, distant. When morning finally came Kiba felt no more rested than when he had gone to sleep. A quick breakfast of dried meats, which had been enhanced by a special blend of vitamins and spices, for himself and Akamaru and the two started back on the trail.

The day went on and for some reason he could not figure out, Kiba felt physically drained. Deciding to write it off as not having had a good night's sleep, and needing a break Kiba stopped at another rest site. The sky was covered with a light sheet of clouds that made seeing the sun, and telling what time it was, impossible. That was not all that unsettled Kiba. Yesterday had been colder than he liked, yet today it seemed many degrees warmer. The humidity in the air made for a rather uncomfortable and sultry day.

Kiba barely noticed a low growl coming from Akamaru, but didn't respond to it at first. When his dog barked loudly Kiba got up with a startle. Barely able to see anything through the eye slots in his mask, Kiba removed the uncomfortable thing just in time to see a figure coming his direction in the mists. Akamaru was on his right, he rubbed the dog's back to silence the growling, as he was unsure who was approaching or how they would react.

Finally coming into view Kiba saw that it was just one person, a woman. As more details became clear Kiba saw that she was dark-skinned, but with striking red hair. What eventually captured him was her golden eyes that seemed to take in every detail she saw with a bold honesty.

"Kiba Inuzuka of Konoha?" she asked with a tone that seemed to imply that she already knew the answer.

Akamaru began growling again. Her eyes passed over the dog, as she extended her left hand downwards towards his muzzle; Akamaru began sniffing her and stopped growling again. When she lifted her gaze, she also lifted her right hand to the sword hilt that stuck out above her right shoulder.

"Yes," Kiba finally answered, "and there's no need for trouble." Motioning towards her sword arm, Kiba sighed in relief as she finally let her arms drop. It was at this point that Kiba finally noticed her head protector which marked her as a kunoichi of the Hidden Village of Clouds.

"Of course." she replied, but that did little to ease the tension.

"I suppose you're curious what I'm doing out here?" Kiba asked, not wanting the situation to escalate.

"Not really," she replied bluntly, "Yesterday my team ran into yours in a nearby town and because they aren't familiar with the area I got volunteered to find you and escort you back."

"Oh that's just great." Kiba said resignedly, "Those two are never going to let me live this down. Needing a rescue after getting lost."

"Don't feel so bad, the Nan Shan range is famous for tricky passes. That's why it was chosen for the Lightning Country's southern border; these mountains have broken the back of more than one invading army."

"That's not it though. My whole team are tracking specialists, I can't see why I couldn't have found them myself, but for some reason I'm unable to pick up their scents."

A glance at Akamaru seemed to tell her everything she needed to know about Kiba's powers; the look of knowledge flashing across her eyes was irritating.

"Hmm…" she mumbled, wondering aloud, "Well, this area is also known for very strong storms and wind currents. Even the best trackers would be hard pressed to keep their bearing up here."

Kiba wanted to be agitated, but her simultaneous reasoning and reassurance eased his temper.

"You're right."

"Great. Now let's not waste anymore time. If we hurry we can get back to town by midday tomorrow."

"Lead on."

Akamaru growled and barked.

"Quite so." Kiba realized, "Akamaru says he wants a name to go with your scent."

A strong smile parted her lips as she confidently said,

"I'm Karui, it's good to make your acquaintance Akamaru. You ready to go Kiba?"

Laughing at the civility that she showed towards Akamaru, where most ignore Ninken, Kiba decided that she was alright; Kiba responded and motioned for her to begin.

"Lead on Karui."

It was an effort to keep up with her, as she set a good pace; but Kiba felt less fatigued that he had that morning, and her arrival had helped to raise his spirits. But as the day wore on Kiba found himself concerned again. He couldn't shake the fact that he still couldn't pick up any odors at all while in the mists. Not Akamaru's, not even Karui's; particularly odd in that she was ahead and they were running into the wind. Getting all other thoughts out of his mind, Kiba focused on getting out of these mountains and out of the mist as quickly as possible.


	2. Chapter 2

The morning came with unfamiliar aches and smells. Kiba remembered Karui had said she wanted to press on later into the night than she had originally planned was the source of the aches. The promise of arriving at the village sooner helped calm his concerns. A soft smell of flowers had wafted into Kiba's dreams, upon waking he noticed that a small fire was already cold and his traveling companion was enjoying a cup of tea. She regarded his questioning look and tersely answered his silent question,

"Rose tea."

Kiba's memory stirred as he had a flashback of his older sister mentioning rose tea, he could vaguely recall the words 'feminine enhancement' whatever that was supposed to mean. Letting the issue rest, Kiba was glad to be able to smell anything at all this morning.

'Perhaps it's a sinus issue,' he thought to himself, 'I'll have to ask sis when I get back.'

He quickly got out rations for himself and Akamaru, who was already alert, but he took his time with the meal. As he did Karui put away her things methodically in a bag that disappeared beneath the folds of her skirt. Taking another large bite, Kiba savored the dried meat and mused,

'Stale jerky is the best; there is nothing better than chewy food.'

The sun was still below the horizon when they set off. The mountain pass changed as the range met up with another set of parallel foothills forming a canyon surrounding the same river he had been following for days now. As the canyon narrowed Kiba couldn't help but notice the color of the river change from a soft blue with ribbons of white to that of almost completely white.

Looking down caused Kiba to take another account of his surroundings. The trail they were on was little more than a ledge carved into the side of the canyon. There were markings on the face of the rock, made by hand and seemingly written in a code. Karui, who was ahead by ten paces looked back and said,

"They're old directions from when this was a secret pass used by Cloud Shinobi. We don't use this anymore, one too many people fell in the river. Now that you know what's on both sides of you, how about going forward?"

Kiba's first impulse was to snap back, but he thought better after realizing that he had been spacing out more often that usual ever since he came here. He nodded an silent apology and asked,

"How much farther to the village?"

"About an hours run. You up for it, or did I push you too hard last night?"

Kiba wished he could have seen her face when she said that, because she sounded almost playful when she asked for a run. Akamaru barked loudly, showing his desire for some action. The air was clear this morning, and as Kiba was now fully awake he felt his senses restored as well. Perhaps his malady the past few days was caused by his pace, he always felt better when he was running.

The town came into view. It was a sizeable village built on top of the opposite cliff face, a large bridge connected the two sides of the ravine and looked strong enough to support even an army's march across. Karui, at last in sight of her goal seemed impatient to return to her usual surroundings, increased her pace to get to the stairs that led to the approach of the bridge on this side of the canyon.

Akamaru stopped and began rolling the side of his head on the ground. Kiba stopped a few paces ahead and asked,

"What's wrong Akamaru?"

The Ninken began barking as loud as Kiba had ever heard before. Unfortunately the warning came too soon before the crisis to be of much help. The ground lurched and cracked in front of them. Sheets of rock fell away from the face of the canyon as the walls of the gorge seemed to be coming together. Karui stopped when the rocks in front of her gave way as well, jumping back but loosing her footing on loose gravel caused her to fall backwards.

The earthquake intensified, Kiba looked at the bridge as it seemed to be folding on itself. A portion of rock behind Akamaru burst open, seeming to explode, and out of the hole poured a strange mist. Kiba gathered his chakra in his feet and prepared to climb the rock face to get to the top of the canyon, which was a good 20 meters up. A scream caused him to forget about this plan.

He saw the ledge Karui had been standing on give way and begin to fall. She quickly jumped from the rock and managed to grab hold of the canyon wall.

"Impressive." Kiba found himself saying amidst the din.

Kiba's comment was drown out by the screech of metal and the popping sound of snapping concrete. The bridge buckled and an entire section fell down into the still narrowing canyon. For some reason Kiba couldn't understand, Karui hadn't begun running up the cliff face; rather she was holding on for dear life to what little grip she had on the rock. The bridge fell and as it did Kiba's view of Karui was obstructed for a second when it passed in front of her. When it did Kiba was shocked that Karui was no longer where she had been.

Another loud bark from Akamaru confirmed his fears. Looking down to the river, about sixty meters below him and one-hundred meters downstream was Karui's form being tossed about in the rapids.

"Damn it!" Kiba yelled as he ran forward.

The rock path in front of him gave way after ten meters. In that time Kiba reached into his gear pack and was grateful that he had remembered to bring a rope and grappling hook with him. Akamaru was running at his side as he dived down into the river.

'She may have been knocked unconscious by the fall. I'll dive down, grab her, then I can focus my chakra to walk on the water until the river calms down.' Kiba thought on his way down.

Deceptively fast currents met Kiba when he broke the river's surface. Looking ahead Kiba remembered that the rapids seemed to fade slightly up ahead; so he focused his efforts on swimming with the torrents, rather than wasting energy fighting them. Doing this he managed to close the distance to Karui.

He managed to grab her and bring her head above water. A gash on her right temple told Kiba all he needed to know for now. Though not responsive she coughed out water and struggled for breath, which was encouraging. Molding his chakra Kiba began to take steps forward and the water started to feel solid beneath his feet. In a moment he was standing on the surface holding Karui over his shoulder. As he was preparing to use his grappling hook he saw a wall of fog roll along the bottom of the ravine. After taking two breaths Kiba's concentration failed and he fell back into the river's current, with Karui falling on top of him.

Kiba barely noticed Akamaru's barking growing fainter as the speed of the current increased. Not having the strength to fight the current and hold on to Karui, Kiba tightened his grip on her and did all he could to keep them both afloat as they headed into white water again.


	3. Chapter 3

It is an odd sensation when your every muscle burns with strain and anabolic fatigue while the body's nerves throb from the cold. Staggering onto the shore Kiba laid Karui's unconscious form onto the smooth stones that lined this side of the river. Exhausted he wanted nothing more than to fall asleep himself but his Anbu training took over at this point. The extensive survival program was designed to teach shinobi to do what was necessary to survive before ensuring any comfort. Kiba thought that odd, especially when the most comfortable thing he could think to do at the moment was take off his freezing wet clothes. After removing his clothes to prevent himself from getting any colder he began to assess the situation.

'First I need to elevate her legs and support her head. Second I need to get a fire going before hypothermia sets in; that water was much colder than I thought. Then I need to check her for any wounds other than her head injury, after that I need to get her warm as well.' Kiba thought finishing his mental checklist.

Kiba's bedroll served as a good prop for her feet, and his flak vest went to support her head. A quick scan of the small riverbank proved a lucky catch as a small pile of driftwood had washed up and dried over time. Swatting away the small swarm of flies Kiba picked the pieces that would burn the hottest. He used a Kunai to cut one of the smaller pieces into tinder, and after a few matches Kiba had the fire he needed.

Basic first aid was essential for Anbu squads even before the days of Tsunade, and even if this were not so Kiba learned more about medicine than he wanted to know from his sister Hana. He checked Karui's pulse and breathing, both were weak but stable. Moving his hands to either side of her neck he checked for any neck injury. She was fine despite a slight muscle stiffness. Methodically he went though the important body areas and determined that she had no threatening wounds. But hypothermia would set in if he didn't get her out of her wet clothes. Thankfully her dress was easy to undo, and Kiba was far from shy about naked women having had the unfortunate experience of being the only male in his house growing up.

He picked her up and moved her over by the fire before going back to lay out her clothes and armor to dry as well. After warming himself up Kiba opened his pack to see the conditions of his other supplies. He still had his rations, three kunai, the grappling hook which had gotten caught on his pants in the currents, soldier pills, blood pills, his first aid kit, and one smoke bomb. The trap wire and all the explosive tags were lost to the river.

With time alone to think Kiba realized that he had not seen Akamaru yet. The ninken was a strong swimmer, but it should not have taken this long to catch up. First he was separated from his team, now from his companion dog. More troubling thoughts filled Kiba's mind though. Twice now, it seemed, as though a strange mist arose that suppressed his senses and ninjutsu. His gut told him that something was seriously wrong.

A bit of color caught his eye turning around the river bend. When it washed onto shore Kiba realized that it was his Anbu mask, picking it up proved to be a disappointment as about a third of the mask had been broken off. Placing the mask next to his clothes, he checked to see if they were dry yet. From behind him he heard Karui groan as she moved. Turning his head he found she was still unconscious but she had changed position without any further audible complaint, he took that as a good sign she did not have any internal injuries.

"Stupid clouds, how is anyone supposed to tell time in this stupid country?" Kiba asked aloud, annoyed more at the situation than the clouds. From the air temperature and the slight decrease in ambient light Kiba got the impression that it was past midday anyways.

Recalling the events of the morning left his mind racing, but his body was unable to do anything more. Laying out his mostly dry jacket under him, and being unable to think of anything else to do, Kiba fell asleep.

* * *

Karui awoke but her body refused to open its eyes. She heard the cracking embers of a low fire and the smells of smoke and fresh water filled her nostrils. Her head ached and her body was cold. She felt a light breeze flow across her naked…

"Naked?" she weakly said to herself.

Willing her eyes open and turning her head she saw the nearby river and the riverbank she was on. Turning her head the other direction, towards the fire, she saw the Konoha nin whose name she didn't recall laid out on his jacket. Her head ached, bringing her hand to her head she felt a sizeable welt and realized that she must have gotten a concussion. From what she couldn't recall exactly, and she refused to wildly speculate like her team mate Omoi undoubtedly would in this situation.

She slowly sat up, the pain in her temple increasing sharply the more she rose. With a better view of her surroundings the first thing she noticed was the first aid kit and a canteen next to where he head was. She looked through it and found the pain killers and took them as advised swallowing the nasty tasting medication with water from the canteen.

Finding her clothes laid out and dried she went to go dress herself. Her muscles were stiff which made certain actions bothersome but a quick glance at the sleeping ninja across the fire from her gave her motivation to do this on her own. She had her pride to maintain, and he had already gotten to see more than she cared for. Upon finishing she rolled out the bedroll that had been under her feet and placed it out next to the fire so it would get dry as well.

Sitting back down she mentally recounted what had happened that morning. Her short term memory loss confirmed to her that she had suffered a concussion. She remembered the bridge, the earthquakes, and hanging from the side of the rock. Why did the attempt to mold chakra to run up the side of the cliff fail? That inability to move had caused her to be struck by a rock on her head.

"I must have fallen in the river, but if I was knocked out by that and didn't drown that means."

She looked at her still sleeping companion again. Those red fangs on his cheeks really accented his fierce looking but strong face. She steeled herself so as not to spend too much time looking at his well muscled frame.

"Kiba," she suddenly remembered his name, "don't tell me you jumped in after me."

Stirring in his sleep Kiba's face turned in her direction. A slight chill in the early evening air nearly put out the now low embers of the fire. Karui's eyes quickly found the source of the wood as she built the fire back up again. Soon the bedroll dried and Karui placed a blanket over Kiba.

In the growing darkness she heard wet footsteps come out of the river followed by the recognizable sound of a dog shaking itself dry. Akamaru walked over and sat down next to the fire. Karui used the bedroll's mat and sat down next to the dog who seemed in no mood to complain. She thought it funny that she remembered the dog's name faster than Kiba's. Despite being very hungry the need to sleep was foremost on her mind. She leaned against Akamaru, who didn't even stir at the motion, and began to fall asleep. The days events would most definitely need to be discussed; but such a conference was better done with a clear head at the start of a day rather than at its end. The strong, rhythmic breathing of the Ninken caused a deep sleep to set on in moments.


	4. Chapter 4

Morning had come and gone at the small campsite; an awkward silence hung in the air as completely as the low-lying clouds did. Kiba was glad to see Akamaru again, but he was surprised to discover that the Ninken had lain next to Karui last bight. Although knowing supplies may become tight, Kiba allowed himself and Akamaru double rations in order to recoup their lost strength from the day before. Using the last piece of the dry wood on the small fire, Kiba knelt next to Karui and decided to break the silence.

"I don't suppose you have a map of the area?" he began with the question most pressing on his mind.

She took a moment to answer him; when she did it was with a poise that fit her well.

"No, I lost practically everything out of my pack to the river except for my tea set and my scroll kit."

"And your huge katana." Kiba added.

"Chokuto." Karui corrected.

Kiba closed his eyelids to hide the fact he was rolling his eyes. This girl, woman rather, was getting on his nerves.

"Okay, no map then." Kiba began again, "So what do you know about this area then? This is your country after all."

"The mountain passes to the south where I found you I'm familiar with sure; but we're in the northern river valley, this place is a maze even with a map. Now let's be honest with each other Kiba, it's not the fact that we're lost that most concerns us."

"Yeah," Kiba said apprehensively, "it's the clouds."

"I've tried molding chakra all morning. Every time I think I have it right my body grows numb and I lose concentration."

"Yesterday after I first grabbed you I tried walking on the river, a cloud bank rolled along the water's surface and I lost control. Have you heard of anything like this before?"

"Not with clouds. I've heard of certain poisons that can interrupt chakra; but those effects are only temporary, not persistent like this."

Looking around at the haze that only gave visibility out to six meters made Kiba uneasy, claustrophobic even.

"There's something strange about all this." Kiba began, standing up and motioning to the surrounding clouds and the canyon walls barely visible. "Yesterday right after the earthquakes started I saw rock explode and out of the bore came clouds. Almost like there's something unnatural at work. Like a doton user maybe."

"It'd take someone almost at the level of a Kage to produce an earthquake like that. And then why target an out of the way village?"

"I'm not the expert on the Lightning country, now am I?"

"Are you getting huffy with me?"

Akamaru barked which made Kiba conscious of the fact his face was getting hot for no reason.

"I think we should straighten out our priorities Kiba." Karui said candidly. "I was sent on a simple little mission to bring back a lost Konoha shinobi, namely you. Going off course and jumping to conclusions are two things I do not intend to do. We should follow the river until we arrive at a point where we can reestablish our position. From there I intend to escort you until you are reunited with your team, which will let me get back to mine all the quicker."

'My first mission as an Anbu, and I wind up being someone else's escort mission, brilliant Kiba.' Trying not to think too much on it didn't help Kiba's attitude.

"Well? Any ideas you wish to add?" Karui radiated confidence in herself, which gave Kiba the impression that anything he suggested would be shot down.

"No, the sooner we get started the sooner we can part company."

"Quite."

Everything was already packed, which made leaving as simple a matter as starting off. Kiba remembered seeing the high canyon walls which looked several hundred meters high, now all that was visible was the base of the rock which he often ran his right hand along. The narrow river bank seemed to be a sign of a strong river, few point bars like the one they had slept on were allowed to accumulate because the water would wash all the sand and rock deposits away.

After an hour of traveling Kiba grew restless. Whether it was the endless wisps of clouds which stifled his sense of smell or the reticence of his companions, he needed to lighten the mood.

"Look, I don't know how much time we're eventually going to be spending together, but I don't like this tension. I'm guilty of coming off strong sometimes, I'd like to apologize."

Karui didn't slow her pace nor turn to acknowledge him. A slight frown turned Kiba's lips after a few minutes, annoyed more at himself for expecting an answer. The rocks underfoot suddenly seemed rather slippery and Kiba stumbled forward. Karui turned from her position ahead of him and caught him from falling. Their faces were so close he could feel her warmth. As they righted themselves, she said with downcast eyes,

"You saved my life back there Kiba, you don't owe me an apology." She paused for a moment before turning, "We should be careful from here on out. The river sounds like it's getting louder ahead."

Sure enough, the river's speed was picking up. The noise kept building until the point of crescendo was found, a rather impressive waterfall. Kiba's grappling hook and line was only ten meters of rope, useless against the fifty meter descent they faced. After a few minutes of scanning the area by the canyon wall Karui found a carved trail leading down. The winding staircase turned back and forth at least twenty times on the path leading to the bottom. Talking further was pointless as the din of the falls would drown out any speech.

Reaching the base rewarded them with an impressive sight. The late afternoon sun finally penetrated the clouds, a strong breeze suddenly arose which drove the clouds to the other side of the valley. The blue lake was clear and reflected the mountains on the other side as a rippled mirror. Kiba took note of the evergreen forest which shimmered as the wind caused each needle to shake off the dew which had collected on it.

They walked further away from the waterfall towards the lake. Akamaru barked when he saw a fish jump out of the water. On Kiba's other side, Karui had her hands together in a seal. After a moment she stepped forward onto the surface of the lake, walking perfectly upon the water.

"Losing the ability to control our chakra doesn't seem to last for long after the clouds disperse. That's a good sign at least." Karui said, seeming very relieved as she walked back to shore.

"Now that we're out of those canyons, do you have a better idea of our location?" Kiba asked.

"I'm not certain which, but I think this is one of the pearl lakes. A series of round lakes connected by a small river, named so because they look like a string of blue pearls. The river we just came from branches out and empties into at least three of them so I'm not sure which lake we are next to."

Kiba's ears picked up as he turned towards the forest. He sniffed twice and allowed his eyes to adjust.

"Someone is coming this way. He's unwashed, smells of gunpowder," his eyes finally saw the figure approaching through the trees and focused upon the man's forehead protector, "and his Cloud insignia has a horizontal line slashed across it."

Kiba grabbed Karui and jumped behind cover as the bombs began flying.


	5. Chapter 5

Shrapnel and stone chips sent flying from the grenade hit the back of Kiba's protective vest. Knowing that the attacker would quickly follow-up on his first strike meant Kiba had no time to plan. After giving a quick signal to Akamaru he helped Karui to her feet, and began running the opposite direction from the large canine. As they ran the boulders behind them were all hit by explosions that left little more than craters in their wake.

"Let's split up." Karui suggested as they ran. "Spread out his attention and it'll keep us from both being hit at once, then surround him and hit his blind spot."

Upon nodding his approval to her plan Karui's deft hands formed a series of seals to gather the chakra necessary to begin scaling the vertical rock formations to their right. Choosing the opposite direction, Kiba ran into the underbrush. His hand instinctively reached for a smoke bomb, but remembering his supply shortage he thought to save it.

Inhaling deeply Kiba tried to pinpoint the assailant by his smell. The man was lucky though, as all the smoke from the explosives masked his location fairly well. The brush he was hiding in provided little concealment. Being in a bad position prompted Kiba to make the first move. If he could lure the rogue nin into the trees he could get cover against the shrapnel, it would also widen the field giving more room for Akamaru and Karui to get good flanking positions. Finally Kiba was able to smell the burning of the slow fuse his opponent must be using to light his explosives.

Moving to get a better view, Kiba saw the details that he had overlooked in the earlier rush. The shinobi was short, barely over a meter and a half. Kiba remembered being that tall when he was twelve and this man looked full grown. A mask covering the lower half of his face added to his menace. His garb was rough, but clever. A simple straw rain cloak with pine needles woven into it had a pattern that would blend well both in the trees and in a field. Doubtless he kept all of his explosives under that shroud. When he turned, Kiba took his opportunity and attacked.

"Tsuga!" Kiba shouted as he attacked, relying on the distraction to doubly aid his allies.

Kiba aimed his attack low. His attempt to cut the foe's hamstring with his Kunai failed as the man safely jumped to the side, leaving two stick grenades in his wake. From his low position, Kiba managed to bat one of the grenades back towards the short man before he rebounded and leapt into the cover of the trees.

The two explosions did not have that much force, but the blast they made dulled Kiba's enhanced hearing. Taking cover behind a tree and peeking around the edge of it, Kiba found that the rogue nin was staying in the clearing. He was standing on top of a larger boulder and rustling for something underneath his coat. Akamaru was sneaking into position in front of the rocks, on the cliff Karui gave a signal that she was ready to come down as well. When they moved in he would be forced to retreat into the trees, and Kiba would have him then. As his hearing picked back up Kiba realized that their opponent was not preparing grenades under his cloak, but making hand seals and chanting.

"Katon: shouidan jueki!"

A sound of a soft boil seemed to come from every tree surrounding Kiba. The noise grew louder and louder as Kiba felt the tree in front of him become hot. Behind him a tree not four meters away suddenly exploded, sending splinters and scalding gobs of tree sap in every direction. The shockwave knocked Kiba down. The tree Kiba was taking cover behind was the next to explode from the jutsu. Running on all fours he sought to escape from the area of effect, to no avail. He realized the had picked the wrong direction as the tree he ran towards exploded two meters in front of him. It was all he could do to shield his face from the blast as he was thrown head over heels backwards.

* * *

Karui moved after the first tree exploded, hoping that the scum she faced had to maintain concentration on his technique. By the time she was down the cliff two more explosions rocked the edge of the forest. Her eyes scanned over to Akamaru who was running full speed at the man's left side.

She drew her sword out of its scabbard on her back and prepared for a low sweeping strike, relying on the thinking that the ninken would go for a high strike when he leapt up to the rocks. As she approached from her high angle Akamaru bounded up the small hill of rocks with impressive stride.

Hands out of his coat, the rogue threw down a smoke bomb concealing the top of the hill. While Akamaru charged into the smoke, Karui held back looking for any movement within the screen. After what sounded like a struggle an explosion rocked the center of the miasma, causing the thick smoke to dissipate. Akamaru jumped back and rolled in the dirt as though to put out a small fire on his outer coat. Before deciding to rush in, Karui smiled as she noticed a scrap of cloth in the ninken's jaws.

Karui found him quickly dressing his leg while hiding between two large boulders. She pressed her chokuto against his neck, letting him know not to try anything.

"You were always a quick one Karui," he said as he slowly raised his hands out from his cloak, "glad to see you haven't changed."

Although she knew she recognized his voice, Karui was better than to let familiarity drop her guard. Rather she grabbed her hilt with both hands and opened a small slice against the neck of the man she could not yet identify.

"I didn't give you leave to speak dirt bag."

Her hand moved towards his face to lower the mask that covered the lower half of his head. Before she could she felt tugged backwards, turning her gaze slightly she noticed it was Akamaru who had bitten her skirt seeming to want to stop her. Taking another look at the man she had at sword point revealed the truth to her. No blood had come out of the nick she had made on the man's neck. With a flourish she sliced the decoy across its chest, it proved to be a log henge'd to look like the attacker. Several pieces of explosive tags fell to the ground now harmless, having been cut in half.

"Where is he Akamaru?" Karui asked, knowing full well the dog understood speech.

After sniffing the air for a moment Akamaru led them into a thicket of dead trees. Karui noted several bloodied bandages at random places, deliberately put to keep Akamaru from getting an exact location. Karui closed her eyes and relied upon her own sense of hearing. Where her teacher KillerBee was one who thrived in the noise of combat, she sought the void of silence, the peace. The rustling of the tree needles, the sound wind made as it wrapped around tree branches and trunks. She searched for the one sound that stood out, the one that did not belong.

Opening her eyes she rushed to her right and swung her sword. The slow fuse hit the ground as did two grenades whose triggers had been cut. The small man jumped back again, but he underestimated the reach of Karui's long sword. Swinging her sword overhead she cut him again. An explosion flashed as she felt her sword make contact.

Regaining focus Karui found only the straw raincoat left behind. Once again the metal of her sword was not stained with blood, which meant the rogue had gotten away again. A hissing sound came from the ground where the coat lay. She and Akamaru ran away from it, and managed to get far enough out from the blast radius to avoid serious injury. Rising from the ground where she landed, Karui helped Akamaru put out the few smoldering hairs on his tail. Smelling something awful, she then checked the back of her head feeling several burnt hairs of her own.

"Come on Akamaru, let's check on Kiba." She said trying to distract herself. Whoever this guy was, two things could be said of him. He was no amateur, and he was a dead man for messing with her hair.

Note: I'm no Japanese translator, nor do I make any claim to be perfect. But I spent a good hour looking at the Kanji, the word roots, and Japanese sentence structure before being satisfied with the technique name. The process was such, that I don't think I'll do it again.

Essentially "Katon: Shouidan jueki" should mean "Fire Release: Tree Sap Firebomb."

These occur in some cases of forest fires. The tree sap inside the trees boil and expand which causes the trunk of the tree to fracture and explode. So our mysterious assailant was boiling the trees and using them as bombs against Kiba.


	6. Chapter 6

The feeling of warm dog slobber on his face was one Kiba knew well. After wiping it off on his glove Kiba opened his eyes to find himself looking up at the sky. A sickly sweet smell of burnt sap filled his nostrils as he recalled the explosions that had knocked him out. Sitting up slowly he saw the trees surrounding him blown down nearly to their stumps.

"It's a clever technique don't you think?" Karui asked in a distracted tone.

Removing the small branches that had fallen on his legs Kiba finally stood up. The forest floor was covered in a thick layer of still smoking wood chips. The technique turned trees into grenades, and left little of the tree remaining.

"The damage from the wood splinters isn't so worrisome." Kiba said, "it's the concussive force of the explosion that hurts."

Looking down at his vest Kiba noticed several large splinters sticking into the armor. He removed them and turned toward Karui, who seemed to be reading a book.

"Did you get him?" He asked.

"No." She answered as she turned a page. "He got away using the rest of his bombs. Akamaru bit his leg, and got his scent so we can track him."

"And you let him get away? You should have placed a higher priority on taking out the danger than checking up on me." Kiba said, half joking in his tone.

She closed the book with her finger marking a page. Walking over to Kiba she stared up at his face. The stance and poise she carried herself with made her seem taller than she was, but face to face Kiba realized that she was markedly shorter than he. Her free hand reached up like lightning and grabbed him by his nose. As she yanked downwards Kiba felt his spine contort as his face was dragged down to waist level, it was all he could do to keep from falling over. Looking up at Karui from this position made him reassess his earlier observation regarding her height.

"Don't think too much of yourself." She said with a dead pan intonation.

Kiba landed on his back as his nose was released with a push. Landing on his back, Kiba once again found Karui sitting on one of the freshly made stumps reassuming her place in the book. The rustle led Akamaru to look up from his position on the ground, before the large dog lowered his head again.

"I decided not to pursue him for two reasons." Karui began without looking up from her book. "The first being that I can't communicate with Akamaru. He's a good ninken, but if I can't coordinate our actions then there's no point. Second, only an idiot would pursue someone without learning more about them."

Kiba's eyes focused on the green book she was reading. It had no writing on the cover, but it had a black ivy pattern on the outside.

"Is that a Bingo Book?"

"Yes, it's the Hidden Cloud's Bingo Book." She answered.

"Why didn't you list that as one of our assets when we started out." Kiba failed to suppress a hint of frustration at her withholding the information.

"Probably because I didn't figure the two of us would have time to go hunting random missing nin on our way back to civilization."

Akamaru barked from his place on the ground. With a smile Karui added,

"Sorry, the three of us."

Turning back to the book caused her face to sour. She grit her teeth as she nodded her head.

"I thought so. You bastard."

"Found him?"

"Yeah. It's Hiroyuki, an old lecture teacher from Kumo's Academy. He was only part time because his focus was teaching explosives and their proper uses, though he was also well regarded for his traps and fire techniques."

"You'd think he'd be easier to recognize, his height is pretty distinctive."

"Last time I saw him was when I was ten. Back then he was taller than me so I didn't think anything of it. But yeah, he is pretty short."

"So what is he wanted for, any why do you think he attacked us?"

"Says here that he disappeared after an explosion killed two of his assistants at the chemical lab where he worked. Nobody figured it was him until it was discovered that across town an archivist was killed and a forbidden fire jutsu scroll stolen. His last known location was hitting up a foundry where he stole certain rare chemicals, most likely for new explosives. As for why he attacked us, I don't know."

"It seems suspect to me. A lab rat like him is more likely to be hidden away mixing powders than out on patrol attacking the first shinobi he comes across. Meaning there is a possibility that he's not alone out here."

"If he is alone. He's probably thinking we're a combination task force from Konoha and Kumo. He has already managed to get away once, but he can't risk staying here if there are any more than just the two of us so he'll leave at his first opportunity to avoid detection."

"On the other hand, if he's working with someone than that means that he was out on a regular patrol. Whatever they're doing up here could be compromised but they would stand a better chance of fighting off whoever is coming after them." Kiba ran his fingers through his hair before remembering the dog slobber that was still not quite dry on his glove.

"But after seeing Akamaru he knows that he can be tracked, so that means he might try to eliminate us rather than risk us getting away with his general location."

The atmosphere around them began to feel heavy. That westward wind, which had cleared the mist out of the valley died down and the sun setting behind the mountains immediately caused the air temperature to drop. Kiba could see the lake through the trees, a wall of cloud moving quickly across its surface towards them.

"Our options are simple." Kiba said, sighing between sentences, "If we move out now, we can probably lose Hiroyuki on the short term. But if he comes after us he will catch up because he almost certainly knows the area better than we do. Our other option is to track him down."

Akamaru stood up and barked.

"That's one vote for going after him."

Karui opened the Bingo Book again and closed it sharply.

"I never liked that guy anyways, he was a lousy teacher. But to be honest, it's his eight million ryo bounty that interests me. What do you say to a sixty-forty split, you and I?"

"You offer me the higher share?"

"You're the one who is going to track him down, that's worth ten percent."

"Well,' Kiba paused a moment, "we have to catch him first but it's a deal."

Kiba took off his glove and spit on his hand. Surprisingly Karui didn't hesitate to do the same and they clasp hands on the bargain.

As the fog rolled into the forest Kiba breathed deeply expecting his senses to dull, he was startled when they did not.

'Finally, something goes right for once.' He thought as he motioned for Akamaru to take point in tracking this Hiroyuki. In a quick glance to his side, Kiba saw an excited expression marked by a genuine grin on Karui's face. It was refreshing, to be honest.


	7. Chapter 7

Stooping over a broken branch Kiba inhaled deeply and remembered the words he had been told so often by his mother. 'There is no such thing as a single scent.' Over the years he had learned that what she meant was that in tracking one must never be single-minded; musing to himself, he realized that the same advice was good in life. The broken branch smelled of blood and wet straw, indicating the wounded man garbed in a straw cloak they were following. The footprint in the ground added scents of powdered stone and gunpowder, the materials this Hiroyuki used in his work. The air itself smelled of sweat and adrenaline from labored running. Focusing on any individual smell made the world sharper, his eyes seemed drawn to the areas his nose identified. His nostrils flared as he integrated every scent into one image, his trained instinct gave him more information than often seemed appropriate.

"He's has two kilometers on us, and he's managing to keep a steady pace." Sniffing again, Kiba continued. "I think he's stopped twice either to rest or set up simple traps, we can avoid those and continue after him."

"If he did set up traps, we shouldn't underestimate him. You wouldn't believe how complex of traps he could set up in under a minute with only razor wire." Karui looked up, seeming irritated at the endless mist surrounding them. "And this cover will only make the traps harder to see."

"Then let's catch him before he gets the chance to restock on explosives."

Set back on the trail, Kiba increased the pace their group was taking in order to catch up with the rogue faster. Pine needles grazed his cheek and he wished he was back in one of the southern forests. The forests surrounding Konoha were perfect for adding a vertical element to skirmishes, but the branches of these trees were too small and close together to be used like that.

As they approached the first place Kiba had identified as a potential trap he gave a hand signal to Karui informing her of it. She stopped and looked for a few seconds before pointing at two trees. Narrowing his eyes Kiba saw what she had seen, droplets of mist seemed to hang in the air unmoving. Bending over she picked a stick from the ground and threw it in between the trees. It stopped in the air as surely as if it had been caught. Near invisible cables wrapped around the stick, snapping it in half. At the same moment the trees fell in the direction the stick had been thrown, intended to crush any who had followed the one who had triggered the trap.

Akamaru barked an all clear having searched the surrounding area for any scent concentrated areas that other traps may have been set up at. Returning to the chase, Kiba let his smell enhance the world around him again as he tried to zero in on their quarry's location.

"He's stopped again. We'll bypass the next trap and use this time to catch up with him."

She nodded and gave him a look that seemed to compel him to remind her when that time would come. Without returning her look Kiba increased his pace again, they had already lost more than enough time from when he had been unconscious. As there were no set paths, Kiba had to constantly choose which way he would run around the trees as they appeared before him in the fog. It was exhilarating in a way, never quite sure how the forest would shape itself in front of him. More than once he had to jump to his side to avoid a row of trees that he could not run through. One time this maneuver landed him very close to Karui as she was running, nearly knocking them both over. It was then he decided that he did not like this forest.

Upon reaching the second of the Hiroyuki's stopovers he gave the signal to run around and pick up the trail on the other side. Not ten paces later Kiba noticed that Karui was not following him. She was barely visible through the fog. He heard her gasp as she fell to the ground.

"Karui!"

He ran back to where she was, kunai in hand preparing to disable any trap she may have sprung. Sad disappointment filled him when the scene became clearer as the fog parted.

"Keep it down Kiba, I'm not that much of an amateur to fall into a trap."

Fighting to keep his concern hidden, Kiba knelt down in the ground next to her. She was removing a series of branches on the ground revealing a small door. The smell of gunpowder was stronger here than in the trail they were following. Her hand pressed two of the wooden panels together which opened the small chamber. Realization set upon them as they recognized what this was.

"He didn't set up a trap here, this was a supply cache." Karui said seeming irritated.

Kiba knew that the longer this went on the worse it would get for himself, Akamaru, and Karui.

"We can't let him set the pace. We need to somehow get ahead of him and set our own ambush."

Karui nodded in agreement, she put her hand on her sword hilt and freed the blade from its scabbard a few inches before sliding it back in. When she realized she had distracted Kiba she apologized.

"Sorry, nervous impulse. Bad habit I've never really been able to break."

"If we're going to get in front of him we'd best start moving."

For the first time in days Kiba finally felt in his element. Team eight was noted for being tracking specialists; but his heritage was centered on the ultimate form of tracking, the hunt. In hunting it is essential to not only know where your prey is, but where they are going. With a new intent the forest which once seemed dim and damp seemed to come alive and hum with anticipation. The darkness of evening had finally set in, and every annoyance and challenge of the forest now acted to spur him on.

They jumped down into a small creek, which was dry owing to the season. Kiba could focus on the smell of their target. His pace was slowing, his leg smelled of dried blood and antiseptic cream. Selecting a position two hundred meters ahead of Hiroyuki's they laid in wait. Focusing his chakra he enhanced his hearing, listening especially for Akamaru to make the first attack.

The sound of a slash and a cry of pain broke the night's silence. Leaping from behind their cover they charged at the short shinobi. Once again Kiba smelled the slow burning fuse and knew they had to make this fight short. In the haze of the mist Karui flashed her sword through graceful forms, she seemed more like a spirit than a kunoichi. Hiroyuki threw down a grenade which exploded with a blinding light. Karui raised her free arm to shield her eyes, Kiba knew how to work without his sight though. As one sense fades out, another becomes stronger. Each step betrayed Hiroyuki's location to Kiba's sense of smell.

"Now Akamaru! Gatsuga!"

Akamaru went low with the attack, knocking the man off balance. Kiba's slammed himself into Hiroyuki's chest with his attack, knocking the bomb expert down completely. Jumping back, in case an explosion occurred, Kiba waited to see if the short man was still moving. Weakly Hiroyuki raised his arm and pulled out a canister.

Karui rushed forward with her sword and pierced him in his right shoulder. This did nothing to stop him from touching his fuse to the canister which shot up a bright green flare high into the night sky. The sky flower pulsed light in increasing brightness, which when reflected off the fog made for an uncomfortable radiance. Finally it exploded shooting a beam of light straight up into the night sky, which paused in the air and didn't burn down for twenty seconds. On the ground, Karui's sword still in his shoulder, Hiroyuki was laughing.

"I hope you two didn't have too much trouble with me," he said coughing, "because I hate to think what's going to happen when you face who's coming next."

Karui put her boot across his face, knocking him out, before freeing her sword and sheathing it. A line of pale red shadow floated across Kiba's vision, an afterimage of the flare. He adjusted the straps on his bracers then looked at Akamaru and Karui.

"Let's hope his friend puts up more of a fight than he did."

Akamaru growled in agreement and Karui nodded. For a moment Kiba could swear that her gold eyes shimmered briefly in the dark, but it was probably just his imagination.


	8. Chapter 8

Karui's hands moved quickly and surprisingly accurate in the darkness. After fully disarming Hiroyuki she propped the short man against a tree and tied him up with a combination of razor line and rope. When satisfied that he would not be able to escape she contemplated lighting a match to check the status of the stab wound on his shoulder; but rather than risk her night vision, she trusted in her skill with the sword to not inflict a serious injury.

The conditions were less than ideal. The mist grew heavier, but had none of the properties of the strange clouds encountered over the past few days. As much as she was glad of the change, it was unsettling to think of a vapor that can inhibit chakra. Looking up to the sky yielded nothing, as the moon and stars were well hidden behind clouds that would freeze on their way north eventually dropping snow along the northern coastline.

Claws digging into the soft ground was the only noise Karui could make out, Akamaru had been keeping busy making ditches and shallow recesses for Kiba's crude traps. Though he had said his specialty was not in making traps, her reassurance that Hiroyuki had been a terrible teacher convinced him to take over the task. When completed Kiba easily found his way through the darkness to her.

"Explosives are set," He said in a voice lower than a whisper, "I only smell one person coming this way. I'll use the explosives to drive him towards the dry creek where you'll be waiting."

"And if that doesn't work and you need backup?"

"I'll fire off one of those flares."

Satisfied with the plan, Karui made her way back to the seasonal river bed. Knowing the evening would soon get bright once again she rubbed her eyes in an attempt to enhance her focus, though even if she had excellent night vision she would still see little in the fog. The wind began to pick up. The chill in the air was so that she retied her forehead protector so that it covered her ears better. She debated removing her earrings as well, but decided not to.

The wind's strength continued to increase, nearing the point of it seeming unnatural. She turned back the way she came when the first explosion broke the evening's quiet. Hearing a noise spring up behind her she drew her sword to find a nocturnal deer run out of her vision. It was then she realized that the wind had thinned the fog significantly, even more surprising was that the moon was shining in it's waning phase in the sky. Two more explosions came in rapid succession, their distance seeming farther away than the first one. When she could barely hear the fourth one she became worried.

"Agh!" she grunted as she shielded her eyes, the sky became bright green as a flare shot up from the ground.

Running as fast as she could, she knew she was still a few minutes away from Kiba's location. On her approach she confirmed one suspicion that she had, this wind was definitely not natural.

* * *

Taking cover in one of the shallow ditches did little to shield Kiba from the near hurricane force of the wind, but it prevented the fast flying debris from hitting his front. After setting off the flare Kiba had lost track of Akamaru, and in this wind his ability to track by smell was useless. When the wind died down slightly, Kiba focused his chakra to get a better position of the man in the wind. It seemed that the hurricane force gales lasted for only a minute or so, requiring some time to build them up again.

Finding his target's scent, Kiba activated the bombs he had planted near that position. Sending up the flare meant the original plan of driving him to the river was finished, but the bombs might still be useful.

A concussion wave filled the air, as though the force of the bombs was amplified and directed specifically towards Kiba. He struggled to keep his footing, but the shockwave temporarily threw off his equilibrium. In a haze he saw a dark shape with dreadlocked hair moving towards him. Grabbing a kunai he attempted to throw it but dropped it in a weakened grip.

"I wondered when we'd finally have an assassination squad come up here. My money was on tomorrow, guess I lose another bet to the Sage." the man's voice rang distorted in Kiba's ears.

With his head finally starting to clear Kiba saw the man was wearing very dark tights, a large bag was hanging from his waist. Unsheathing a short sword strapped to his back he flipped it between his two hand before he brought it down on Kiba.

"Ha!"

Karui's own sword flashed as the moonlight reflected off it, knocking the much smaller blade out of the dark man's hands. He leaped back finding a smoke cloud appear next to him. Akamaru had been disguising himself as a large tree root and made to bite the shinobi's arm. In a move better suited to a dancer than a fighter he spun and kicked the large ninken to the side.

Back on his feet Kiba rushed forward alongside Karui. Their opponent quickly formed seals indicating another attack. Focusing his own Chakra Kiba concentrated on his feet, deciding to run straight into the wind with his feet firmly secured to the ground. Karui took a different approach and ran off to the side hoping to flank him, dividing his attention and creating an opening for an attack.

"Futon: Daitoppa."

The wind seemed to emanate from the mouth of the attacker, but most jutsu rely to some degree upon a manipulation of the environment. Kiba knew the technique really raised the air pressure behind the user and lowered it in front, creating a tunnel of sorts for the high speed winds. Still the wind generated was staggeringly strong. Kiba's feet stayed firm. He raised his hand once again to shield his eyes, just in time as luck would have it.

He felt an impact hit his bracers, practically shattering his left one. From the glimpses he saw, Kiba noticed that his attacker was reaching for rocks in his waist bag and tossing them forward into the wind. The speed would amplify the force of even small pebbles into deadly projectiles. A rock hit him just above his right knee and he fell to the ground, another grazed his left ribcage, sending him to the ground in a spin.

Looking up after the wind stopped Kiba saw their aggressor actually throwing stones, now imbued with his Wind elemental chakra, with even greater force than those thrown in the gale. Akamaru dodged as a rock punched through a tree as it might paper. Karui's own sword took on an unfamiliar glow as she sliced through oncoming rocks, deflecting them to either side of her. Still he managed to keep both Karui and Akamaru at a distance safe for himself. His hands combined in another sequence of seals, as he did Kiba jumped to a nearby tree and hoped he had enough time.

"Futon: Kamika…" The jutsu was interrupted by a massive explosion.

Kiba didn't look away from his target as he laid the cables down, they had been the controls to his final bomb trap. Walking up he saw that the man in black lying on the ground clothes smoking from the explosion; his hair all burned off, but he was alive.

Karui stood, seeming in awe. Before she could ask, Kiba answered.

"I can't see flows of Chakra like those with doujutsu but I like to think I'm luckier to have my other senses enhanced. The air pressure he generated was like a vacuum to my ears, I couldn't see it but I could feel where it was. Throwing the last bombs into that space caused them to explode from the stress, and the only place for the explosion to go was right at him."

"I can see why they gave you that mask now." her voice seemed part sincerity and part incredulity.

'Is she trying to insult me or compliment me?' Kiba wondered to himself. Though he thought that, he couldn't stop feeling a small swell of pride at her approval.


	9. Chapter 9

"All right Akamaru, mark them."

Akamaru barked and seemed to smile at the command. Lifting a leg he urinated on the unconscious shinobi one after the other. Tied to separate trees in opposite directions, there would be little they could do to help each other escape when they eventually woke up. Kiba heard Karui suppress a laugh as she watched the scene out of the corner of her eye.

"They should be out for a while, and even if they wake up they'd have to be boneless and skinless to escape from these ropes." Adjusting his vest, Kiba walked over to Karui, who was reading the Bingo book again by the light of a small fire. "Find our new friend?"

"Samuru the Gale. He's small time, only worth two-hundred thousand ryo." Karui sounded disappointed, "Barely made it out of the Academy, when he disappeared nobody thought twice about him. What worries me is that he seemed oddly well trained in wind jutsu for a dropout."

"We may learn something about him yet. Akamaru picked up his trail a few moments ago, maybe they had a hideout."

"Okay, sounds promising."

The thinning fog made travel easier, but Kiba's mind was still not at ease. He had Akamaru mark the criminals they had captured because should the chakra blocking mist arise again, the dog's natural sense of smell would be able to track them back down. It was still well into the night, but the moon shone thorough the branches of the evergreen trees. The light was broken up into thin strips as it passed through the web of needles.

As the shack approached Kiba's sense of smell identified three additional people by their scents, but none were nearby at the moment. Giving a go-ahead nod to Karui they approached the shed, avoiding the few land mines she pointed out. Getting to the door, she stopped Kiba and Akamaru with a gesture. Looking at the front door for a few moments, she gently hit the doorpost twice before hearing a clicking sound. Opening the door safely proved that she had successfully disarmed whatever trap had been set.

The shed had seemed poor and rather drab from the outside, but the inside was impressive. A small room in the front had supply racks and hammocks, it led to a staircase going down to a well-craved out basement full of alchemic supplies and scrolls. As Karui went down to examine the scrolls Kiba found an empty patch of floor covered by a fine powder. Rubbing his fingers in it and smelling only puzzled him further.

"This room smells heavy of gunpowder supplies, but this powder here isn't used in any recipe I'm familiar with." Kiba stood up and walked to the work desk, there he found a stack of recently burned pages.

At the scroll library Karui found one emblazoned with the Cloud Village symbol. She opened it and began to read.

"Before you get too into that, can I have one of your blank scrolls?" Kiba asked.

She obliged him and handed over the scroll, it was an average size so it would serve his purposes. With his kunai Kiba first cut three rectangular strips out of the scroll and set them aside. He looked for an calligraphy set on the table and found one. Pricking his thumb he mixed his blood with the ink; when satisfied with the amount, he dipped the brush and began writing.

"I think this is the fire scroll Hiroyuki stole from the archives." Karui said, sounding puzzled. "But I can't see why. This technique is about controlling the sonic frequencies of fire. Anything from making fire sound like human's voice, to sounds only dogs can hear."

Akamaru lowered his head and covered his ears in a joking manner.

Focused on his work, Kiba completed writing on the third piece of paper. He cut holes in the top of each and tied string loops into the holes. Karui looked over, confused.

"Special Inuzuka flash bang strips. They emit a noise significantly louder than usual exploding tags."

With her curiosity sated, she turned her attention to the rest of the desk. Kiba unrolled the remainder of her scroll on the floor and began making the very intricate blood seals he had leaned from ANBU. He made a six point seal surrounded by a flowing script of multiple characters. To the side Kiba wrote an even larger series of characters, some in code others in the few alphabets he knew. Ideally these seals would all be in blood, but Kiba didn't know how much time they had until someone else returned so he worked quickly.

"Looks like they were growing some kind of crystals here. Seeing the effects of heat on their growth, and even the core chemistry and structure." Karui said hesitantly, it was her best guess given the poorly organized work desk.

Setting the remainder of the ink in a place outlined on the scroll, Kiba took a moment to recall the sequence of hand seals he had to make. Carefully he picked up the burnt papers from the desk and laid them inside the six pointed seal he had made. As he prepared to begin forming the seals Karui's attention turned towards him.

"What are you doing?"

"Another little trick that I had to learn to get my mask. When I say so unroll more of that scroll, but do not move the part I have written on."

She complied and took a place sitting next to him. For some reason Kiba had trouble remembering the sequence when she did that. Shaking his head he began again. The seals he made were designed to burn away the bottom of each page while identifying what had been written on it. No page would be complete, but even fragments would betray what they had wanted to hide. However each one required forty hand seals to complete the sequence of activating the identification matrix, transferring ink from the well to the other side of the scroll, and arranging the letters into what was hopefully their original pattern.

"Now… now… now." Kiba said, indicating each time that Karui should unroll more of the scroll.

When the last burned page disintegrated Kiba cracked his knuckles and rubbed them from the strain. The technique was tiresome, but it had a good success rate. The scroll had fresh ink on it, the chakra written letters finally setting into the page. Karui's eyes had been scanning it as it was written, but the order of the pages was not finished until now.

"This one here is a map," Karui said pointing to one of the pages, "almost looks like a map of a mine or caves."

"A mine." Kiba said confirming her suspicion, "On this page someone named Daisuke says that they're ahead of schedule in mining 'clusters'. And this one looks like Hiroyuki is asked to lower the sulfur content of his gunpowder because their digger is complaining about the fumes getting in her eyes."

"Each page seems marked by some kind of seal, but I don't recognize it. The details aren't clear enough."

Akamaru's head shot up and he let out a soft growl before running up the stairs to the entrance. Knowing they would be unable to hide their actions here meant that confrontation was the most likely outcome. Karui drew her sword and walked up the stairs as Kiba rolled up the scroll. Placing it in his bag, he turned to the stairs, but turned back to grab the tags he had just made. When he reached the top of the stairs he found additional kunai and took a moment to tie his tags to those. Karui also looked at the supply racks for a moment. She grabbed a small box from the shelf and placed it in her waist bag.

They readied themselves near the entrance. Kiba noticed fog roll in along the floor. Akamaru began whimpering louder than he usually did. Kiba was afraid the dog would give them away when suddenly it seemed like Akamaru was gone. Quickly turning his head Kiba tried to find his dog but instead found that the entire room seemed swallowed in a cloud. Karui vanished and the walls themselves seemed to fade away. Kiba held his hand up to his face, but even it vanished in the light gray haze. Suddenly an unfamiliar feeling overcame him, one he had been trained to ignore as an ANBU, it was terror.


	10. Chapter 10

The whole world seemed engulfed by clouds. Kiba tried balling his hands into fists but he felt nothing, it was as though his hands were not there; no, rather that his hands had become a part of the mist itself. A gentle calm came upon him and save for the faint warning in his mind he was completely at ease. It was the lack of feeling that scared Kiba, though he couldn't give words to the thought he knew his central nervous system was being shut down.

"No," he tried screaming but could not hear the words out of his own mouth, "this isn't real. This is an illusion."

Mind racing, Kiba could not decide whether knowing this was a genjutsu made things easier or harder. He closed his eyes, but that didn't help as his eyelids seemed to dissolve away as well. A dark figure appeared in his vision, followed by another. The shapes seemed familiar, as though part of another life. The swirling mist surrounded everything, swallowing everything. The two forms broke apart and disintegrated into the gray mass.

A sudden rush came upon him, as though he was falling in a space with no gravity. An overwhelming epiphany filled his mind, a knowledge that he had never existed at all. It was comforting, peaceful. Suddenly a jolt shot up his arm, a new sensation he had never before experience racked his new world bringing a profane form of life.

"Aagh!" He yelled in an enhanced agony as he looked down at his arm. "My arm?"

There was a hole in the haze, his vision cleared as he saw his arm was cut on a shuriken lying on the table. He picked up the weapon and examined it the way a child looks at a new toy. As the opening in his vision began to close again Kiba's consciousness awoke bringing his sense of self, his fears, and his training. He used the few seconds of his narrowing vision to search for the grenades that had been lying in racks on the table. Grabbing one in each hand he threw them against the nearby wall before he jumped down to the ground.

One world filled with a single sensation replaced another as the explosion left a ringing in Kiba's ears. Looking up he saw the mist surrounding the shack had been blown back, but the distance cleared made it seem all the more ever-present and menacing. His vision turned towards where his companions were standing. Akamaru was beginning to stand while Karui was staggering near the rail. As she laid her hand on the rail to steady herself Kiba noticed that it had been damaged in the explosion, it broke under her weight and she began to fall to the lower level. Jumping up Kiba grabbed her, but as his body was not fully awakened yet he fell to the ground with her on top of him.

Awareness dawned upon her face when she finally grasped the reality of their situation. She looked over to the broken rail and back at Kiba. Placing her hands on the ground she attempted to rise, but her muscles failed and she fell back atop Kiba. Not wanting to risk her falling, Kiba placed his own arms around her. The familiarity of human touch seemed to help as his body was "waking up" from the effects of the genjutsu. Oddly she didn't complain but rested her head on Kiba's chest.

"We probably don't have a lot of time," she whispered to Kiba without moving her head, "whoever was performing that genjutsu is close and is probably already moving in."

"If he's the one manipulating the clouds up here, he has the advantage out in the open. Let's head for the caves, that way if there is anyone else we can try to separate them."

Placing her hands against Kiba's chest she rose, this time with a fierce look in her eyes. Steady feet under her, her hand moved to her sword hilt as she knelt back to the ground. Kiba rolled over onto his hands and feet next to Akamaru. He smiled devilishly as he realized the drawback to the genjutsu that had been used on them. It put the enemy to sleep without a fight, but if broken then whoever was affected would wake with renewed strength and stamina.

They ran towards the base of the mountain, knowing from the map that the cave's entrance was near the shed. In their haste Kiba saw the fog thin in front of them but that only fed his growing suspicion. Looking to either side the fog seemed like it was pulled away from their front and gathered behind them.

"This fog is not natural." Kiba half said to himself.

"You only now figure that out?" Karui replied as she stopped.

A wall of white-gray rock towered in front of them. The fog gathered around them in a slowly tightening ring that seemed to respond to their movement.

"Either whoever is doing this is toying with us, or he's not entirely certain about our exact location and this jutsu is meant to respond to any movement." Karui said as she cleared her sword from its scabbard.

"No, he knows where we are." Kiba sniffed sharply, clearing his nose, "The fog masks their scents, but it doesn't hide it completely. There are three of them, and they're taking their time coming to us."

Focusing his eyes he found a dark shape in the side of the mountain face, the entrance to the mine. The more they ran the closer the sides of the fog came to them. When they finally arrived at the mine the fog stopped dead at the opening.

"Idiot!" Karui said aloud to herself, "It was a trap. Designed to lead us right to the mine then seal us inside."

Looking along the wall Kiba found a small power generator with a switch which seemed connected to a series of lights. Activating it gave light to a room that oddly seemed smaller in the dark. Piles of bags were stacked on top of each other along one wall. Bending down, Kiba found the same fine crystalline powder he had seen at the shack.

"No, it's not a trap." Kiba said as things began to click together, "It's a very specific jutsu planned to react to movement between the shack and the mine. Yes we were targeted by a genjutsu, but if this mist is anything like the one we encountered a few days ago, then anyone else would have their chakra disrupted."

Walking over to the pile of bags Kiba took a quick count as he attempted to heft one, it was heavier than it looked. Looking over his shoulder Kiba saw Karui pull the box she had taken from the shack and began tinkering with it. By the entrance Akamaru scratched his right paw against the ground three times, then his left paw five times, his tail was swaying quickly. Karui put the box away before turning with a questioning look on her face.

"Three people incoming, five-hundred meters, moving fast." Kiba translated the code for her.

"If even one of them is a doton user, they'll have the advantage in this cave."

"Our other option is fighting them in an environment where we're not even sure we can use our chakra. How do you like our choices?"

"They suck."

"Yeah."

Kiba reached back to his newly stocked supply bag and gripped several kunai as he took a position behind a column of stone. Karui turned off the light switch before performing a quick henge turning into a stalagmite. On the other side of the room Akamaru transformed into the one of the bags in the large pile. Satisfied with their positions, Kiba crouched and waited.

The mist once again cleared from the entryway, it now rolled gently along the ground for a few feet before evaporating into the cave's warmer air. All at once the fog drew back from the figures entering the cave. From what Kiba could see, the entire valley was clearing off the fog to the point where the first lights of dawn could be seen on the treetops just barely visible from his vantage point.

The sight did not distract his gaze from the three robed figures who entered the cave. One very large man and a young woman were on either side of the third, an older man with dark wrinkled skin. As the woman moved to turn on the lights, the old man grabbed her arm and shook his head. His attention turned towards the cave, stopping at three specific points: Kiba's, Karui's, and Akamaru's.

"Interesting." Was all the old man said as a devilish smile crossed his lips.


	11. Chapter 11

Knowing their positions were compromised, Kiba knew he had to move quickly or the initiative would be lost. A quick scan of the rock around the entryway revealed the opportunity he needed. Throwing an explosive tag kunai at the roof of the cave caused a significant amount of rock to break loose. The large man shoved his elder outside, away from the debris, leaving himself and the young woman inside.

From behind the wall of rock, that nearly blocked the entire entrance, the old man's voice was barely audible.

"There are three in there with you. I'll join when I can."

As Kiba began to rush the two strangers remaining his mind went back to his ANBU training. With Akamaru and Karui on either side, his attack would most certainly be able to flank and defeat whoever he charged first. As his eyes quickly scanned his opponents, Kiba thought about which of the two would be more important to eliminate first.

The large man wore a vest under his cloak that he was still throwing to the ground. With his arms like that, any counterattack made would be less elegant. Kiba's eyes noticed the large tattoo on his chest, his attention then moved to the glitter of knives and swords kept beneath the vest. A face like a piece of stone, his hair was shaven except for the back, which was divided into a series of small ponytails. Kiba decided he was a hard man, who would not go down easy.

Looking to his right, Kiba saw the girl. Her hood, sewn into the neck of her kimono, no longer covered her face and Kiba saw that she was no older than he or Karui. Her hands were already moving together to form a chakra seal, which meant she was actively working on a jutsu.

'Do I attack the immediate danger, or take the opportunity to attack a preoccupied foe?'

Too often had Kiba experienced an unexpected attack from his teacher Kurenai when she looked distracted. Far too often had he been knocked down in his overconfidence to let it happen again. He rushed at the girl, intending to catch one of her legs. When he grabbed her left foot, Kiba brought his fist down hard against her knee not expecting that he would be the one to cry out in pain.

"Doton: Domu."

Her hands were held together in the serpent seal, and her skin took on an even darker shade of brown that it already was. The technique was simple and clever; enhancing a weapon with elemental properties was no different from enhancing your own body, and hers was now as hard as rock. With a flourish she whipped the excess of her kimono around her arm, and punched down on Kiba's low position, but Kiba deftly dodged to her side.

On the other side of the room, Akamaru broke his disguise and jumped at the vested man. The surprise attack left a sizeable gash across the side and back of the man's head, taking off several of his braids. Too well trained to get angry, he drew a short sword and a kama from the inside of his vest and began circling the ninken.

Kiba had little time to notice his companion dog's fight as his own kept him busy. She was a fierce taijutsu user, her hardened body enhancing her strikes; after blocking two punches Kiba thought it better to focus on dodging. Backed into a stalagmite Kiba dodged a punch aimed at his head and kicked her non-anchor leg out from under her. Rather than falling, the agile woman tumbled and flipped back onto her feet, right in front of Karui's position.

Karui's sword moved like lightning, and it was shining as vividly. The woman jumped aside, gripping her left shoulder, spitting out a non-verbal curse. Her skin lightened, it seemed as though Karui's attack broke the technique.

"You're getting sloppy Akie." Karui said to the young kunoichi.

"And you're still as likely as not to attack from behind Karui." Akie replied.

Deciding to help Akamaru, Kiba ran towards the back of the large shinobi and rolled under the kama thrown at him. Landing next to Akamaru, Kiba formed his familiar hand seals.

"Jujin Bunshin."

Akamaru turned into a clone of Kiba and circled around to the shinobi's other side. Kiba took his chance when the man's back was turned to him. In a spin, the larger man moved faster than he had a right to. Kiba's took a glancing hit on his left forearm, but the strike caused the shinobi to lose his grip and the sword dropped to the ground. Akamaru pressed an attack as Kiba reached into his pack for a Blood Pill.

"Doton: Doryuso."

Karui's sword slashed at the stone spikes that formed as she charged at Akie. The kunoichi's hands flew as she made seals, and before Karui could attack again the cave began to collapse on all sides around Karui.

Akamaru's high kicks prevented the big ninja from pulling out another weapon. After taking another hit to his head, opposite to the cut, he was taken down to a knee. Kiba moved in and grabbed the larger man's arm; applying a submission hold he learned from ANBU, followed by a sharp twist and a tug caused the shoulder joint to dislocate. Looking over his shoulder, Kiba saw Akamaru blitz Akie, slamming her against the wall.

The rocks blocking the entrance to the cave exploded inward, Kiba ducked to avoid getting hit by them. The old man, eyelids closed, seemed to be assessing the situation without even having to look at it. Karui came at him, sword arcing with energy. His head slowly turned to regard her, and with a hand seeming to move in slow motion he grabbed the blade. Metal snapping in his grip, thirty-five centimeters of the sword's tip broke off in his hand. He then attempted to stab Karui with it, but she jumped back to avoid it.

Kiba moved in simultaneous to Akamaru, intending to get behind him. The older shinobi took a wide stance and punched at Akamaru, who was still four meters away. Yet Akamaru looked to take a hit and fell to the ground at the elder's feet, breaking the bunshin effect. Turning towards Kiba the older ninja's eyes finally opened, the pupils seemed wide and flat and they had an eerie yellow glow to them.

"Sage eyes." Kiba whispered as he realized what he was seeing.

A pain sprang in Kiba's breast. He found himself on his knees gripping the tip of Karui's sword that had been thrown at him, a glow of chakra faded as he grabbed it.

"Kiba!" Karui screamed from the other side of the room.

Vision in a spin, Kiba noted the other two shinobi were rising from their positions. Karui rose and turned on the power generator, which caused the suspending lights to flicker on brightly. A few shuriken from her brought down sections of the cables which caused several dangerous tendrils of electricity to whip about the room.

Akamaru ran over to Kiba, and grabbing the ninken's back helped steady him on his feet. The Sage paid no heed to the wires as he walked towards Kiba, stopping only to pick up the short sword fallen to the ground. A mist rose with each step he took; what was first a sheet of fog soon became a cloud. The sight of it sent a shiver down Kiba's spine.

Knowing the situation had turned against them, Kiba motioned for Akamaru to cover Karui. The Inuzuka flash bangs he threw were practically deafening, but he hoped the attack would buy them the few seconds he needed. Next he used a smoke bomb, which covered the entire breadth of the cavern. Picking Karui up Kiba limped deeper into the cave, supporting his weight on Akamaru and Karui. Throwing his last smoke bomb behind them Kiba found they were at a fork in the cave. Two forks were neatly carved out, as though part of a mine, the other was natural and barely big enough to walk through.

The cries and shouts of their pursuers behind was followed by the crash of collapsing stone. Taking the tunnel to its end Kiba saw that it led to a massive fissure which tapered up until it closed; the opening below seemed made of the very black of midnight. When the passage behind started to fill with clouds Kiba took a chance and grabbed Karui. Giving a command to Akamaru, Kiba threw the grappling hook before jumping into the dark.

* * *

I decided to be cheap and just use techniques from the anime/manga.  
Doton: Domu - .com/wiki/Earth_Release:_Earth_Spear  
Doton: Doryūsō - .com/wiki/Earth_Release:_Rising_Stone_Spears  
Jūjin Bunshin - .com/wiki/Beast_Human_Clone


	12. Chapter 12

Waiting proved to be the hardest part of the retreat. The lingering sounds of distant blasts and shouts were a constant reminder of their pursuers. New cracks in the cave walls were accompanied by disturbingly loud popping sounds. After a few minutes the tumult began to grow more distant, and eventually faded. Karui got up first and offered her hand to Kiba to help him up. He waved her off and stood up under his own power. Kiba strained his eyes in the darkness as he looked to either side; the fissure was barely wide enough for Akamaru to walk in, it would not be suitable for any first aid.

"Let's see if we find another chamber, hopefully someplace a little bigger than this." Kiba's suggestion received a nod from Karui, "Akamaru, you take point. Karui, if you'd watch our back?"

"Of course."

The cave proved rather more hospitable than others Kiba had trained in. Its air was neither stagnant nor poisonous, as is often the case in caves. Each step he took came with a rather disturbing crunching sound. Kiba ran his right hand along the wall and felt fine crystal formations, so he assumed the crunching was the breaking of similar formations on the ground.

"Kiba, look down." Karui sounded astonished.

Turning around Kiba saw a trail of dots on the floor behind him. Starting about where they had landed and forming in regular intervals, each dot on the ground was glowing with a dim blue light. Following the trail to its source confirmed that each spot was caused by blood dripping from the wound on Kiba's left arm.

"A tracking technique?" Kiba asked.

"I don't think so." Karui said breathlessly as her face, and the cave, was lit by an increasing illumination.

Kiba removed his hand from the wall startled when he saw that his handprint was now a gleaming mark in the rock that faded as the rock around it began to brighten. From ahead Akamaru growled quietly.

"He says there's a cavern up ahead we can go in." Kiba turned back to Karui who seemed focused on the edges of the light on the rock. Oddly it seemed that after a short distance the light faded, that the rocks were reacting to them. "Karui?"

"I'm coming." As she followed Kiba she retrieved the box she had gotten from the supply shed and put something in her ear. Finally Kiba realized that it was a radio transceiver.

Sitting down in the cave Kiba pulled out his first aid kit and took a soldier pill and another blood pill. Karui entered laid her sword on the ground before adjusting several dials on the radio. Akamaru remained in the hallway to watch their backs, his tail sticking in through the aperture.

Using a Kunai he cut off the remainder of his left glove before analyzing the wound. Looking up he realized that he had taken the light in the cave for granted, not even wondering why the walls gave off light.

The crystals in this cavern were much larger than the ones in the fissure, the less agitation in this area probably contributed to their growth. Forming in groups and clusters, there was something oddly organic to the way they grew. Kiba couldn't help but shake the familiar feeling the crystals gave off.

"I could have sworn… maybe." Kiba concentrated his chakra in his hand and touched one of the clusters of crystals, as he did its light filled the entire room, not uncomfortably though.

"Chakra crystals," Karui said softly, "I thought pure chakra crystal was beyond rare."

"Rare and valuable." Kiba added.

Though the sound was muffled, Kiba heard static come from the receiver in Karui's ear. She pressed her hand to adjust it and enhance the sound.

"Where'd you plant the radio?"

"Hooked it up to the generator upstairs, the wires to the lighting should act as antennae to enhance the signal." A satisfied look came over her face when she got her dials just right. "They're back in the main room. Here, have the other earpiece, you should hear this too."

Kiba put the radio in his left ear and labored to hear the low sound.

"…_between the shafts you dug and the natural caves, I doubt we'll find them Akie." _The voice was deep, sounding like it came from the large man.

"_Give me more credit than that Daisuke," _Akie said, _"I sealed every tunnel leading to the entrance. They got away, but they can't get out." _

A loud crash caused some feedback which made both Kiba and Karui take the speaker out of their ears momentarily. As their conversation stopped, Kiba cleansed the wound on his arm and threaded the suture needle in preparation for stitching.

"_Are you alright Elder Saito?" _Akie asked, sounding hesitant.

"Saito?" Karui said the name fearfully.

"_Heh, at least we know what happened to Hiroyuki and Samuru now. Konoha ANBU and your old rival from the academy. A Joint-nation task force, it's a new world we're living in. I was afraid of something like this after Akie's foolish experiments with Doton mining jutsu caused a small series of earthquakes. But how did they find the source so fast? Blast!"_

Another crash sounded, rocks splitting and crumbling.

"_Watch your temper boss," _Daisuke said, _"we've already got several bags buried under rubble."_

"_Right, the bags. I want all of them up on the peak by tonight. Once you deliver the last one's I'll give you your payment. One pure crystal each, enough to live on for ten lifetimes."_

"_Are you sure what you have will be enough?" _Akie asked. _"You were planning on having Hiroyuki make another batch."_

"_Always plan to have more than you need dearest." _Saito answered and paused for a long moment. _"What I have will be enough, enough to make my statement. Now I'm going up to the peak to prepare my storm, the last cloud Kumogakure no Sato will ever see."_

Kiba finished the stitches without even flinching. He held out the gauze to Karui but she was lost in thought.

"Karui, who is Saito?" Kiba asked.

Karui retied her headband before taking the gauze from Kiba. She methodically wrapped Kiba's wound before her eyes turned to Kiba's bloody chest armor.

"We really should have taken care of that cut first." She said almost angrily.

Kiba reached under his vest and pulled out the shattered remains of his ANBU mask. Throwing it on the ground he said,

"It wasn't any good to wear anymore, so I kept it under my armor. Kind of strange isn't it? Having my life saved by a broken mask. Your sword-tip barely penetrated 2 centimeters, only reason there is so much blood is because I took two blood pills. This one will heal fine."

Over the years Kiba had learned to smell certain emotions in people, giving truth to the adage that animals can smell fear. Karui's scent was awash with apprehension.

"Saito was once called the Shadow of the North. A Sage of Nature who refused the position of Raikage twice to serve as the Lightning Daimyo's Counsel. Talk is that he had a falling out with É before the start of the last war and disappeared. And now we're trapped in a cave, up in the mountains, and he's trying to kill us." Her next pause smelled of strength, determination, and sadness, "What's worse, I think he wants to destroy Kumo."


	13. Chapter 13

Despite his continued objection, Karui got Kiba to take his shirt off. Stubborn insistence would not allow him to let her clean the wound, so she turned back to the pages of her Bingo book. When he was finished cleaning and sewing the lesion closed she helped wrap the gauze around him. Her strong hands brushed against him, the rough callus' on her fingers were signs of long hours training with a sword.

"Akamaru, smell anything in the corridor?" Kiba asked. The ninken lifted his head from his seated position and sniffed at the air.

"Can't you smell it yourself?" Karui asked as she finished with the wrap.

"There's a different air current in the shaft than in these side caves." Kiba closed his eyes to focus on the scents. "The shaft has an air current from the mines, it smells of old fire and chalk. It's odd, but the caves smell more like the forest."

"Maybe there's a way out to the forest then." Karui suggested.

"I think you're right." A bark from Akamaru confirmed no new scents were present. Looking at Karui with her fingers in pages of the book Kiba asked, "You find anyone new?"

"I already know the girl. She's Akie, one of my rivals from the academy. Vanished from Kumo four years ago, the investigation turned up nothing but dead ends. She's fast, a taijutsu expert, and is very good with her doton ninjutsu. She had the bad luck of getting paired against me though, my elemental nature and hers never got along."

"Worth anything?" Kiba asked as he got up.

"Only a couple thousand. Now the big guy is worth ten million." Karui handed Kiba the book which had a detailed profile of the tattooed man. "Daisuke Steelhands. I remember he used to train with my teacher Bee. He used to brag that he could sleep with a sword in one hand and a woman in the other and nobody would get cut."

Kiba's eyes went to the list of bureaucrats and officials Daisuke had killed. A skilled assassin who became a sell-sword after leaving Kumo. He was most wanted for killing an Earth Country lord and his entire entourage after the last war.

"Akamaru," Kiba raised his voice assertively as Akamaru walked over and sat down next to Karui. Karui scratched him behind his ears, "follow the air current in the caves to find the way out." The dog barked and nodded as he sniffed and ran off down a tunnel.

They followed Akamaru for a few minutes before Karui spoke again.

"So what's the connection? It's obvious that Akie was here to help with the mining operation." The passage ahead had a low ceiling so they ducked down, a sharp crystal scratched against Kiba's shoulder.

"Remember what we saw at the shed? They were experimenting with crystals, changing their structure and properties. At first it didn't make sense, but if they were mining chakra crystals here… then what's the point?"

Akamaru scratched a wall up ahead and growled before backing away from it. Karui scratched the wall with her sword and knocked her hand against the rock. Laying her ear against the stone face she said, "Two meters of rock and another three meters of earth."

Kiba flexed his left forearm, but his grip still felt weak from the cut. Getting a soldier pill he motioned to Akamaru, "Here boy."

The soldier pill caused a noticeable change in the ninken. His fur turned a shade of red and his eyes opened wide. A loud bark reverberated through the cave and shook the walls. After a few moments of concentrating his chakra, Akamaru's claws began to glow softly. Jumping at the wall paw-first Akamaru began to claw at the stone, which yielded like soft soil to a shovel. After a minute of digging Akamaru had make a hole big enough to get out.

"Good work boy." Kiba said as Akamaru began to resume his usual shade of cream. After stepping outside Kiba turned back to offer his hand to Karui to exit the mountain. Her gasp caused Kiba to turn around quickly.

The entire floor of the valley was covered in mist. A southerly wind blew violently through the trees and up towards the mountain. Looking up to the pinnacle Kiba saw a mass of clouds growing larger and larger, centering around the peak.

"It's the mist." Kiba's eyes focused on each particle of the mist, the individual bits f water rose and fell with the wind. "The old man controls the mist. I remember it pulling back when he arrived and his… footsteps."

"If he controls the mist," Karui paused for a moment, "Does that mean he's the one behind our chakra failure? But what's the connection to the crystals?"

Kiba scratched his head and wished he had learned more about natural chakra substances. "I don't know anything about these crystals; supposedly only the first Hokage had the ability to use them."

"But we know they were changing the crystals with Hiroyuki's fire technique."

"And then pulverizing them into a fine powder. A powder he infuses the clouds with."

"Then he wasn't bragging about destroying Kumo. If he can knock out every shinobi inside of his cloud…" Karui's voice grew silent as determination filled her eyes.

The wind increased in intensity. Looking out to the lake, three small water funnels spun as they reached higher into the clouds. The lake water slowly drained as the clouds grew larger and darker. Kiba turned his eyes back to the ground, looking up was a distraction. After tightening the straps on his armor Kiba removed his right glove and balled his fists.

"He's a Sage, odds are he knows we're alive." Karui held her breath for a moment afterward.

Kiba focused his chakra, beginning his metamorphosis. Not knowing how long he would have until he would lose his strength meant that a strong start was crucial. The sensitivity of his senses enhanced. His eyes, ears, nose, touch and even taste were all sharper. Every fine hair on his body gave him more information about his surroundings than any normal shinobi could gather. Finally his fingernails became claws. Putting out his weaker left hand, Kiba ran his nails down the rock, scraping and cutting a path as they went.

"We move fast then. I can still smell them, so they haven't released all the crystal dust into the storm. From our experience we know that the effect isn't permanent, but I guess it lasts long enough for his purposes."

Karui checked her sword in its scabbard, making sure that it would come out easily despite being broken. Behind them Kiba heard Akamaru stretch and yawn as the ninken's own claws effortlessly tear up the rocky ground. After a quick nod, Karui ran ahead in the direction of the mine's entrance. Kiba followed at top speed, overtaking her in but a few seconds.

"The girl is up the mountain, close to the Sage. The big one is coming down on his own, probably to get those bags. We take him out, then we move up." Kiba noticed that Karui didn't respond to his statement, her focus was keen as the blade still left on her sword.

Arriving at the cave entrance, they found Daisuke standing calmly with folded arms. Karui charged in and slashed her sword at Daisuke who turned her away with a slap knocking her off balance. He pulled a katana from a strange holster kept inside his vest and brought it down in a two-handed slash against Karui. Using the momentum from the slap, Karui went into a cartwheel kicking the sword out of Daisuke's hands as she dodged out of his range.

The sword reflected a pale flash of light across Kiba's eyes as it flew. Akamaru brought up the attack from the rear as Kiba concentrated on the man's left. Daisuke's hands went to his waist, where matching short swords in scabbards were tucked into his belt. As fast as the swords were out they were put back into their scabbards.

A moment passed before Kiba realized he was on his back, a great slash mark decorated his vest but hadn't cut deep. Akamaru lay near the entrance of the cave, licking a new wound on his front left leg near his paw. Karui stood with the Daisuke's fallen katana in her hands.

With a cold face Daisuke turned from Kiba to Karui as he said, "Don't disappoint me children."


	14. Chapter 14

Karui kept her sword in a high guard as she circled Daisuke who neither turned nor acknowledged her movement. Taking a step forward she noticed him twitch as he drew out his left sword and slashed in her direction. Dropping below the attack and rolling Karui landed safely. Daisuke cleanly slid his sword back in his scabbard and folded his arms.

Leaping back towards him she ducked under the attack and charged the katana with her natural raiton element. The strength of the technique is in its speed. The cold misty air turned to a hot steam in the wake of her attack. Daisuke's two short swords flew in his hands and came together like a pair of scissors, the blades were glowing with a soft white light. Karui's stolen katana snapped in half as the two blades cut through the metal and nearly cut her, but spinning the hilt of the katana in her hands she managed to turn Daisuke's attack away from her, allowing her to jump back to a safe position where she knelt down.

Karui looked up at Daisuke and the mountain behind him. Finding her broken Chokuto on the ground, she put it back in her scabbard and silently assessed the situation.

'Kiba said he came down after we had left the cave, that means the Sage may have sent him down to stall us. His attacks are wind based, which puts my raiton blade at a disadvantage. I'd be better off going up the mountain to face Akie and her doton jutsu.' With each breath the air seemed to thicken with moisture, Karui collected her reserve to stave off panic. 'We're running out of time.'

Seeing Kiba in her peripheral vision Karui saw that familiar, determined look on his face. He was baring his fangs at Daisuke, which she assumed would do little to impress the sword user. Akamaru stood strong on his wounded leg and let out a growl, Karui had no doubts about how tough the ninken was.

Standing up Kiba cracked his knuckles and his neck. Advancing he said without looking back,

"I've done this dance before. Akamaru and I will take him out, we'll cover you on your way up. With any luck, we'll be right behind you."

Akamaru ran straight at Daisuke, without even a command. The attack was faster than Daisuke had expected, though he dodged the claws Akamaru's bite came away with one of the short swords. Kiba rushed at Daisuke, but Karui's focus was on the mountain. A stairway carved into the rock was now visible, which was invisible the last time they had passed the entrance as the fog had been too thick to see through.

Kiba's grunts and Akamaru's barks faded into the rumbling of the growing thunder. After climbing a few hundred meters Karui came across a staging area which had the same fine powder residue as was in the mine. Several broken bags had been left here with a few trails leading off in the same direction. Continuing upward Karui found the stairs tapered off before finally ending. She was near two kilometers up by this point, her ascent had been fast and between the thin air and the thick clouds, breathing had been a labor.

Knowing she was approaching the precipice Karui continued upward, the rocks were slanted at around thirty degrees but the high speed winds had blown away most of the sand and debris, making for sure footing. In the distance she could make out a figure sitting on a flat patch of ground and meditating. A sudden gust of wind blew in a thicker layer of cloud, which obscured her vision for a moment. Drawing her chokuto, she slashed at a shadow she saw move in the clouds. Her attack made contact and the shadow collapsed as it crumbled into pieces of stone.

"A rock clone," Karui's eyes scanned the mists around her attempting to get a fix on Akie's position, "you're going to have to do better than rock clones if you want to get the jump on me."

A hand formed from the mountain and grabbed at her feet, a slash cut it off and it turned solid rock again but then it seemed to melt back into the mountain. The earth shifted and the mountain made a cracking sound, as though it were trying to echo the sky's thunder. The clouds thinned slightly giving Karui a clear vision of what Akie had done. It was not one hand that had clawed its way out of the rock, but many. Arms freed themselves from the stone and were pulling themselves from the stone. Heads, chests, torsos all visible in every direction, none had formed past that point. Hundreds of rock clones were fused to the mountain waist down in a ring around Karui.

The abominations all spoke at once, each with a different voice, they joined in a mocking din that was so loud it brought Karui to her knees. Bringing her hands together Karui focused her chakra hoping this was a genjutsu so she could release it. As the stone clones began to fade as the mist grew thicker. And she knew she was successful.

"Not bad Karui." An arm slipped around her neck and Karui felt the blade of a Kunai slide into her back. Akie laughed as she twisted her grip, breaking Karui's neck.

* * *

Even disarmed of another sword, Daisuke was no less dangerous. Kiba had to dodge another wind slash as it arced his direction. The chakra blade cut the tops of several nearby trees before it faded from sight. Pulling a hand scythe from his vest, Daisuke swung it at Akamaru, barely missing the hound as the ninken's claw cut into his right shoulder.

Akamaru pulled back to a safe distance as Kiba moved in again. Dodging two chakra blades, Kiba jumped in the air and let himself be hit by the edge of a third along the side of his vest. The impact put him into a spin, which was exactly what he wanted as it heightened the force of the heel he brought down on Daisuke's position. The ground shattered and a small crater formed from the strike but Daisuke had sidestepped to evade the impact.

Sweeping his clawed hand to his side, Kiba cut the larger man across the right calf muscle. Daisuke twisted the kama in his hand and a weighted chain fell from the handle that twisted around Kiba's right arm. Both hands on the kama, he gave a hard pull and Kiba flew up into the air against his will. Grabbing the chain around his arm, Kiba adjusted his position in case Daisuke pulled on the chain. Kiba had every intention to meet an attack with a counterattack.

"Heh, idiot boy." Daisuke frowned as he tightened his grip. The chain began to glow with a faint white light as the metal started digging into Kiba's arm. Kiba fell to the ground and heard a popping sound, his bracer was snapping from the pressure of the technique. As the arm guard shattered Daisuke pulled on the chain, leaving Kiba facedown.

An ear-splitting bark came from across the clearing. Daisuke fell backwards and let go of his sword as he reeled from Akamaru's technique. With the large man's equilibrium and balance thrown off Akamaru was free to tackle the man. It was all Daisuke could do to raise his left forearm to the ninken's powerful bite to spare a more critical wound. Spinning the kusari-gama in his hand, he managed to wrap Akamaru in the chains. They rolled along the ground until Daisuke had his arm freed from Akamaru's jaws and the dog was even more bound by the chain.

He was staggering and without a blade in hand. Kiba took his chance, not wanting him to recover Kiba threw one of his specialized flash-bangs hoping to add blind and deaf to disorientation; but Daisuke proved to be both fast and attentive. With his good hand he grabbed the kunai mid-air and crumpled the flash-bang before it went off.

"Toys," Daisuke said mockingly, "you accost me with toys." Pulling a scroll from a hidden pocket in his vest Daisuke unrolled it and spread the blood from his left arm across the page. The page smoked and a sword near at tall as Daisuke appeared in his right hand. It was a double-edged wave blade with a blood-red motif along the fuller. Where most swordsmen would have trouble holding a weapon of such size in both hands, Daisuke hefted it as thought it were light with his injured arm. As more blood dripped from the wound in his forearm, the sword seemed to glow with an ominous red light that radiated out into the mist itself.

"I can sense certain things, especially where blood is involved," Kiba said with a sharp sniff and did not like what he smelled, "that sword eats life, doesn't it?" An involuntary twitch in Daisuke's upper forehead was all the confirmation Kiba needed. "Well that makes one of us who is willing to put their life on the line for this. It would be insulting on my part to not respond in kind."

Kiba felt the hairs on the back of his neck all stand up straight as he focused the chakra pathways in his body. His heart beat faster, his vision intensified, and each breath seemed to last a lifetime. "Open the first gate. Kaimon."


	15. Chapter 15

_The first thing you're going to notice is an intense burning sensation. Your mind will go numb, memories will come unbidden to your thoughts and your joints will ache._ Kiba's mother had an authoritative quality even in memory, though to Kiba's senses she may well have been standing next to him._ It takes less than a minute, but what is happening is your chakra network is taking over the job of your nervous system. By removing your limits you'll be on another level for a few minutes, but don't let it last longer than that._

Daisuke spun his sword with his weak arm and charged at Kiba. The large man's speed was terrifying, the low cut not only cut a trail along the ground but it also nicked Kiba's right cheek along his fang mark. Jumping back Kiba dashed around to Daisuke's right side, hoping it to be his weaker one. A high, overhand strike and a sweeping ground slash proved that it was not.

Removing his now broken armor, Kiba fully gave himself to speed. In full sprint the world went into a blur, though the mists already gave their surroundings that appearance. His reactions were at their peak, he could still feel the speed of the run as he attacked Daisuke from behind. Claws tearing into the back of Daisuke's flak vest shredded it to the point where it fell off the larger man, revealing a horrific dragon tattoo design along his back. The scratch marks cut deep into the flesh when Kiba noticed that they were getting smaller. No blood came from the scratches, but instead the wounds were closing.

In a rage Daisuke screamed and began to swing his sword wildly. Cutting up more ground as he attacked, Kiba easily dodged the offensive. From the side Akamaru growled before barking,

"_Look down, he's not just swinging wildly."_

Eyes darting to the ground Kiba saw a series of runes had been carved into the stone floor. Righting himself, Daisuke slammed his sword straight into the ground and began forming hand seals.

An emotion overcame Kiba, though at this point he was unable to say what it was exactly._ Your emotions will be powerful, but confusing. This is one problem with using Kaimon. That's why it's important to have a strong focus when you release your limits, otherwise all that strength will be wasted and you'll be worse off for using the technique._

The air hardened and became visible as Daisuke's technique took effect. Dozens of guillotine blades were swinging in the air, centering over the clearing. Clenching his fists and his teeth Kiba narrowed his eyes and focused his vision._ The strength of the pack is the ability for many to concentrate on a single target; to master this next technique you must be one with the focus of an entire pack._

Growling Kiba rushed at Daisuke. The sword came up from the ground and as it was moved in his hands so to did the blades of air begin to fall. Dodging to the right, one missed Kiba by a good two meters. Running under another one, Kiba felt rock chips hit his legs from behind. Akamaru barked encouragement as three more missed, and with all his speed Kiba drove home a punch that he knew broke Daisuke's short ribs on his right side.

The taller man smiled as the great sword spun in his hand cutting Kiba along his chest; a rapid dodge kept the cut shallow, but it reopened the wound Kiba has sewn up. Dropping the sword Daisuke formed another seal with his hands which brought all the air blades in to surround Kiba. Turing his head, but keeping Daisuke in his sights, Kiba looked for a gap in the blades he could escape though. With labored breath Daisuke said,

"Bloody little pup."

The opening was only there for a moment, but Kiba took it. Daisuke's yell as he finished the technique brought all the blades together with such concussive force that the mist was cleared in a ring around them for two hundred meters. Daisuke saw Kiba running at him as was beginning to lift his sword again, but he was too slow.

_Now you'll see others use Kaimon as the start to deeper techniques, the Lotus Blossom taijutsu school for example… but if I ever catch you using that I'll disown you. The pack focuses on attacking certain vital areas. The goal is not to kill your prey, but to weaken them, leave them unable to stand against you. Attack their loins, hamstrings, rump, throat, shoulders, and heart. The combo I'm going to teach you is named for the great Eight Dog Legend, it's called…_

"Hakkenden!" Kiba yelled as he finished his attack; jumping over Daisuke's head he landed on the other side. The sound of Daisuke's knees hitting the ground and sword falling from hand confirmed what Kiba needed to know. He shuddered as his body's limiters came alive again, but the rush of it all didn't leave Kiba. Taking a deep breath Kiba lifted his head to the mountain and let out a howl louder than any he had done before.

* * *

"Release!"

The body in Akie's arms exploded sending smaller arcs of electricity flying off in a dozen directions, but most of the energy shot into Akie who fell to the ground and broke into several large chunks of rock.

"I should have known that was too easy." Akie's voice echoed from several directions at once. Karui knew she was still hiding amongst her rock clones, and feared that she would attempt another genjutsu. She had barely managed to form her lightning clone to release her from the genjutsu and take her place. Judging the delivery of the last technique, it was easy to guess that it was based around sound.

_Genjutsu is wack yo, those suckers don't know how to attack yo, this is how you jack 'em up gotta give them a smack, yeh._ A smile parted Karui's lips when she remembered training with her teacher Killer Bee._ If it's a sound-based jutsu, here's what you gotta do. Keep your cool, focus your ears, and get that fool, yeh._

Karui swept her broken sword in a low arc and closed her eyes. Countering sound genjutsu was a matter of intense concentration. Most of the sound was a distraction, only one specific audio wave would have chakra in it. Karui heard Akie's clones rise again from the ground, taunting her with obvious scorn, as the noise grew louder it took more effort to filter out the voices that didn't matter. Charging her chakra around her ears Karui sifted through the voices, and the empty ones fell away leaving only one remaining behind her.

She turned and ran towards Akie, her sword crackled as her lightning elemental chakra surrounded the blade. Obviously surprised, Akie broke her hand seal and took a defensive stance. Though she managed to turn the Chokuto aside, she screamed and fell to the ground as the electricity popped when it hit her. Ever the spiteful taijutsu user, Akie kicked Karui's legs out from under her as she fell. Attempting another stab as she rose Karui cut up Akie's left sleeve but didn't break skin. The awkward blow allowed Akie to tear the sword from Karui's hands and she threw it up and behind her.

Karui punched Akie and tackled her, driving them both to the ground. Akie turned the momentum to her advantage and flipped Karui onto her back. Doing her best to turn the flip into a roll allowed Karui to land a good three meters away from Akie. Righting herself Karui saw Akie forming seals which indicated another earth jutsu. Karui was forming hand seals of her own as they raced to complete their techniques.

"Doton: Ganban Kyu!"

Slabs of rock began to rise all around Karui, within the next few seconds they would close in and crush her. But Akie's technique was still too slow. Looking up to the sky, Karui finished her last seal.

"Raiton: Nagareboshi!"

The entire sky light up in a flash for less than a second before the world around them exploded. Karui stood up and pushed aside the remnants of a rock pillar that had actually served as her shield. Walking over to Akie, Karui checked her vitals and saw that she was just on the edge of unconsciousness. Akie's glazed eyes looked skyward at Karui's Chokuto which hung in the air. Karui put her hands together canceling the technique and caught her sword as it fell into her hands. She placed a gentle hand on her rival's forehead and closed her eyes as she was too exhausted to do it herself.

Karui tightened her grip on her Chokuto and felt her chakra flow into the weapon. Turning her gaze back towards the summit she nodded and said,

"There's still time."

* * *

Hakkenden is the 8-Dog Legend (Story of 8 Samurai Brothers) - A Taijutsu technique that hits 8 vital spots in rapid succession, leaving the target immobilized.

Doton: Ganban Kyu - (Bedrock Coffin) Tries to crush a target from all sides with rock walls that join together.

Raiton: Nagareboshi - (Starburst) Using her sword as a lighting conductor, Karui sends a very accurate lightning bolt down on her target. In this case, her sword may have channeled some additional nature chakra from the storm itself.


	16. Chapter 16

Arriving at a staging area carved into the mountainside Kiba looked back to see Akamaru catching up with him. The chain scythe had been a cunning trap for the chain tightened when Kiba tried to take it off, and when he finally had figured out how to remove it the sickle jerked and nearly sliced his hand off. Akamaru barked urgently, urging Kiba to continue up the mountain, but the ninken's voice was not foremost on Kiba's thoughts. The storm was growing ever larger by the second and the air itself took on an unnatural glow. Every movement of the sky seemed to betray a hidden anger, a terrifying motive nearly ripe with murderous intent.

Akamaru finally caught up and licked Kiba's right hand. Another growl was followed with a confident bark,

"_I won't fall behind again. Let's go all out."_

Letting out a sigh Kiba rubbed his dog's head and sniffed deeply, reacquiring the position of the Sage on the mountaintop. Other smells filled Kiba's senses, but an Inuzuka learns to sort through the sensory inputs of smell the way everyone else does with sight. True mastery of tracking by smell also gives knowledge of exact location, time frames, air currents that scents travel on and linger through, and very often items and other details could be ascertained. Finding Karui's scent next to the other girl, Kiba smelled no blood which meant the fight was either still in progress or Karui's sword has made no cuts.

Starting out their run to the mountain's peak Kiba realized that he would have to prioritize his actions. Fighting the Sage on his own would be near impossible, he would require both Karui and Akamaru in the fight. The Sage was obviously in the final stages of preparing his storm against Kumo and would need to be stopped. But the uncertainty of the outcome of Karui's fight ate at Kiba. A part of him knew she was a fine ninja and would be all right, but that didn't diminish the concern he felt for her.

'Don't get mushy over the girl just because you saved her life.' The thought did nothing to ease Kiba's anxiety. "Akamaru, I'm going ahead to the Sage, I want you to meet up with Karui and back me up after you find her."

Akamaru sniffed twice, barked out a _"Yes"_ but also barked something of a laugh that Kiba didn't have the time to ask for an explanation. Their paths divided and Kiba took the path straight up to the peak. He concentrated chakra in his feet to help with the steep climb and realized that fighting on a fifty degree slope with visibility limited by the fog would be suicide. To complicate matters, the enemy was a Nature Sage, like Naruto.

'The question is, how would I beat Naruto? I've seen him fight as a sage before, so what is the weakness?' Kiba struggled to remember, but the invasion of Konoha by Pain and the subsequent Shinobi War were memories he had tried his best to forget. A few vague details were all he could recall, 'I remember the Sage mode didn't last long, that it went away after he used his powerful techniques. So if this Sage is like Naruto, his Sage mode won't last forever.'

The climb leveled off as Kiba finally found the mountain's peak. The clouds and mist were lifted around the area forming a ring of clarity surrounded by the deepening storm. In the center Kiba saw the Sage sitting in front of a pile of the bags from the mine, by the looks of their bulge the bags were still full of the fine crystal powder. Kiba drew his last kunai from his pack, and walked towards the Sage.

'He'll know I'm here. No point trying to sneak up on him.'

Kiba inhaled again searching for any scents he may have missed, any clue that his smell could uncover, but there was nothing except for an old man in his robes. The Sage stood up slowly and placed his hands on the pile of bags, a transparent chakra from his hands seemed to transfer energy from him into the sacks. Taking his chance Kiba threw his Kunai, side stepped and ran at the sage from a different angle.

Spinning around the Sage sat down to face Kiba's charge, with an upheld hand he caught the Kunai between his index and middle finger, his other hand formed a seal as he stared Kiba directly with his deep yellow eyes. Kiba felt his hand freeze right before the Sage's throat. One of his claw-like nails barely made contact with the man's skin, not even breaking it. Kiba was captured by his eyes, he knew it was a genjutsu that froze his muscles.

Setting down the kunai, the sage pulled a crystal from out of his robes without breaking eye contact with Kiba. Placing it between his hands he formed a seal which gave it a faint light and caused it to float in the air. Moving the rock in front of Kiba's eyes, the Sage bent down to pick up the kunai from where he had placed it, he examined the blade and nodded a sort of approval. Breaking eye contact should have ended the genjutsu, but somehow the crystal kept the flow of chakra in place. The old man walked over to his bags and began opening them with the kunai dumping the contents out onto the mountaintop.

Only able to make out the general actions of the Sage was infuriating. Kiba was less than three meters away from the man and was neither able to find any useful information nor could he move. Whenever he tried to focus his eyes on the Sage, his head throbbed until he focused his eyes back on the crystal in front of him.

'Wait,' Kiba thought to himself, 'the crystals are the key. He not only channels his chakra into them, but he can also draw chakra through them.'

Seeming exhausted, Saito the Sage sat down motionless with his hands together. Each breath he took sounded stronger than the one before. 'His energies were returning just through the act of sitting still?' The thought was foreign to Kiba.

"_Konoha."_ Kiba recognized the voice from the radio, it was the Sage, but the man's lips were not moving. _"You are no doubt wondering how you hear me. To put it simply, sound is nothing more than vibrating air, and when one has obtained mastery of one's surroundings, vibrating air to make sounds is one of the easier things to do._

"_You are also curious why I have left you alive. This is for three reasons. First, I had to stop you from preventing me from accomplishing my purpose. Second, is to teach you a lesson in helplessness. You cannot stop this storm anymore than you can hold back the tides. Third, and most important, you are to be my messenger back to Konoha._

"_This new world you fools are creating is destined to fail. To say hearts can change, to trust those who were once your enemies, to join together under a common ideal is all folly. For men's hearts fail them despite their own best intentions, to trust an enemy is to bring death into your house, and those who try to change the system are always destroyed by it."_

From above a funnel of clouds lowered over the pile of crystal powder. Wind finally returned to the serene mountaintop as the mists finally began forming. The Sage stood up, eyes glowing yellow once again, as he vanished into the clouds.

"_Kumo is but the first target Konoha, remember this and despair. My storms strike the hidden villages and your chakra will fail to save you. The wind shall break down all walls, my storm will shake the skies and pour forth thunder as rain, the air itself will choke the life from the lungs of the guilty as well as the innocent… and death, the only peace this world will ever know, shall finally be the end of it."_

Tears stung the corners of his eyes, as he had not been able to close them since the start of the genjutsu, or perhaps the horror of it all finally became clear to Kiba. He could make out the small tornado that was carrying the dust and dispersing it amongst the surrounding clouds. Already his sense of smell began to fade out as the distant smells disappeared behind the clouds. His ears finally heard something through the wind, the sound of struggling and barks, only now did he make out the noise through the genjutsu.

"_Kiba, I can still smell you but I can barely see a thing in this cloud. If you can hear me I'm going to use __**that **__technique."_

Akamaru's howl started off quiet but quickly the air began to vibrate and shake. Soon the winds of the storm were blown back by the force coming from the ninken. Kiba's attention returned to the crystal before his eyes again as it the sound began to vibrate it differently than it had been. After a few seconds it cracked and lost its luster, and Kiba fell forward finally free from the genjutsu. Akamaru's howl faded and the clouds lingered a few hundred meters away. Kiba turned his head and saw the powder was all gone from the mountaintop, again he turned his head to see the Sage nursing a cut on his arm and across his chest. Karui was crouching down behind Akamaru who finally lowered his head.

Bending down Kiba picked up his kunai and turned to face Saito. As he prepared to attack a crack of thunder sounded so loud and with so much force, that the very rock they stood on split and cracked. The realization hit Kiba that Saito had gathered his storm, prepared it, gave it all the strength needed to destroy Kumo, but had not yet set it on its course. A storm to destroy an entire city, kept in check by the power of the man they were fighting and he, Akamaru, and Karui were trapped in the middle of it all.


	17. Chapter 17

There was no longer anything natural about this storm. The loudest thunderbolt Kiba had ever heard roared through the sky, amplified by the Sage's nature chakra the pressure-wave from the sound hit with enough force to send Kiba back a step. Should this tempest ever reach Kumo, or any other city, the thunder would be the last thing to worry about. Distant winds circled the peak, the clouds had been blown back by Akamaru's great howl technique and formed a perfect sphere. It was like standing in the eye of a hurricane, only Kiba felt like punching whoever it was that said the calm of the storm is the safest place.

The Sage, Saito, counted off his fingers and looked with apprehension upon the storm. Reaching into his robe his expression turned sour as he brought forth only shattered crystals. Though an unexpected consequence of Akamaru's technique, it was one of the few breaks Kiba figured they would get in this fight.

When fighting a high-class opponent, each side thinks more about what their opponent is likely to do. Years of training leads shinobi to attack by instinct, when your own reactions are planned out it frees you to focus on your enemy. Saito's Sage eyes were still active, though from what little Kiba knew those would fade if Saito used any major techniques.

Lightning shot across the sky, illuminating the clouds in a sickly, purple light. Though knowing he was not ready, Kiba ran forward hoping the momentary vision loss would give a moment's edge. Saito turned Kiba's punch with a combination block and wrist rotation. The Sage sidestepped and hit Kiba's back open-handed with both palms, sending Kiba face first down to the ground. A quick roll to the side prevented Kiba from having the Sage's elbow plow into his back.

A strange light source flickered across Saito's eyes, before the Sage could continue a taijutsu brawl with Kiba, Karui appeared surrounded by a faint Raiton aura. Her speed was something legendary, and she cut Saito twice across his forearms causing him to jump back. Akamaru charged from the Sage's blind spot, but the Sage tucked his elbows in and turned in a dodge that also backhanded the side of the ninken's face.

Righting himself Kiba knew that their goal should not be to beat Saito while in Sage mode, but rather to use up his energy. Surviving his attacks would be much harder, but wasting their own energy to damage him would be pointless. Keep him on the move, prevent him from gathering enough energy to send off the storm; that should be their goal. On the other hand, with the crystals in the storm all Saito needed to do was knock them into the clouds and within a few breaths the fight would be over.

"Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu."

Forming from the moisture in the air, a torrent of water began rushing at Karui and Akamaru. Knowing the water combined with her Raiton shroud would put her out of the fight, Karui released her technique. Akamaru was righting himself and growling at the wave. Kiba ran at full speed, temporarily releasing Kaimon again for the speed burst and extra chakra he needed. The wave hit Karui and Akamaru and began pushing them towards the edge of the precipice. Kiba focused his chakra in his arms, and especially his feet. Running straight into the wave seemed easier than it should have been, but Kiba knew that an overabundance of confidence was a side-effect of opening the Body's Gates. With outstretched arms he grabbed Karui and Akamaru who were caught in the current. His calf muscles and hamstrings burned as he poured more chakra into his legs and feet to keep them anchored in place. Each additional actions was an added labor: strengthening his grip, opening his eyes to see if the technique was ended, holding his breath until it was finished, fighting to stay conscious.

All at once the water receded and Kiba gulped at air again. Kiba released his grip and checked on his companions. Karui and Akamaru were coughing out water as well, but quickly looked up showing themselves to be alright.

"Still alive I see. Well let's see if you have the decency to die at the hands of your own Nidaime Hokage's techniques next." Kiba turned his head to see the water from the technique had not all run off the mountain top, but pooled in many large puddles. Saito's hands moved unbelievably fast to form seals for his next technique.

"We can't let him finish that technique Kiba," Karui said coughing up more water, "I have a plan, but I need to get close." Kiba leaned in to hear her whisper her idea.

"Suiton: Suishoha."

"Now!" Karui yelled.

Kiba once again wrapped his arms around Karui and jumped as high as he dared without going into the clouds. Akamaru's jump had less height, but the ninken focused his chakra and ran along the top of the great water technique. Kiba flipped Karui in his arms and relied on his increased muscle function and flexibility to throw her from midair towards the Sage. Her sword sparked with electricity as it became a raiton blade. Saito released his technique and punched directly at Karui's sword. The blade shattered and the lightning energy dissipated. A second punch sent Karui flying, her sword hilt knocked out of her hands.

Kiba landed next to Akamaru in time to see Saito make seals with the blood coming from the scratches on his arms. Knowing what was coming Kiba let go of his Kaimon release and began making hand seals of his own.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Nyoi-jizai."

A hideous three-eyed skeleton with a great horn appeared with a terrible laughter. The creature turned his head to Saito who simply said, "Do as you will." Another round of laughter escaped the monster's mouth as he angled his head towards Karui. Running diabolically fast, he lowered his horn to scrape against the ground leaving a gash that smoked and burned behind him.

Kiba had no time to think. Jumping on Akamaru's back he kicked the ninken's flank urging him into a run. Finishing his hand seals, Kiba hoped they would reach Karui in time.

"Jinju Konbi Henge: Sotoro!"

White smoke flared all around Kiba as he combined with Akamaru to transform into the Two-Headed Great Hound. In two quick bounds they caught up with the apparition and Kiba closed his jaws around the monster's horn. It burned in his mouth, but from the corner of his eye he saw he had made it in time as it stopped barely fifty centimeters away from Karui's face. Akamaru's had his teeth around the Nyoi-jizai's leg, the creature made a sound that was more pain than laughter. The monster did not give up, but instead wrapped his clawed hands around Kiba's throat; even with its head trapped, it moved as though it was not restricted.

Kiba choked as the world began darkening by a few shades. Not giving up, Kiba closed his jaw and snapped the horn off of the creature's head. Laughing hysterically, the Nyoi-jizai brought its forehead up and stabbed Kiba in the right shoulder of his transformed state. Pain seared his senses, not like the pain of being stabbed, but of being burned. Panic gripped Kiba as from the corner of his vision he saw Saito sitting down and surrounded by a rising shield of cloud.

"Now Karui, do it!" Kiba bellowed from behind the mask of his transformation. Wind muffled his speech and the clouds began to close in on all sides.

"I got him… Raiton: Inuzuma."

Pain and light were the only two elements in the world as far as Kiba was concerned. Closing his eyes did nothing to lessen the blinding brightness. He felt his transformation technique break and he landed hard on rock. Kiba awoke to see the last rays of sunlight disappear behind a nearby mountain. In the sky the first stars of evening were growing in luster as the ambient light faded. A tug on his shoulder rolled his head to his left where he saw Karui's hands working on bandaging the burnt skin where the Nyoi-jizai had stabbed his transformed self. Akamaru was licking the cuts on Kiba's left arm and from the swaying sound behind him, his tail was wagging happily.

As he tried to sit up, Karui firmly pushed him back down to the ground.

"Don't move, I have to fix you up and close the cuts you reopened."

"Did you get him?"

She didn't answer; she just ran her fingers through his hair, sat back and looked at clear evening skies in all directions.

* * *

Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu - Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique

Suiton: Suishoha - Water Shockwave

Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Nyoi-jizai - Pretty bad monster thing:

Google Image Search: Nyoi-jizai

Jinju Konbi Henge: Sotoro - Man Beast Combination Transformation: Double-Headed Wolf

Raiton: Raiden - Lightning Release: Lightning God


	18. Chapter 18

Kiba still felt Karui's fingers in his hair, her touch was firm yet soft. There was something oddly calming about her that seemed to unwind all the tension from the battles and let him sleep. It suddenly dawned on Kiba that he had fallen asleep with his head resting in her lap, pulling his head up and opening his eyes led to the fast realization that his position had changed from the top of the mountain. He was being carried on someone's back, and the color and shape of the hood being worn suggested it was Shino.

Turning his head to either side Kiba saw several shinobi marked with the crest of the Hidden Village of Clouds. After a moment, his eyes woke up from his deep sleep and he clearly saw they were each moving with someone bound to their backs. The faces seemed familiar, but the haze of waking did little for Kiba's memory.

Their pace was slow, Kiba figured that was meant to not aggravate the wounded. On his other side he could hear the chattering of conversation. Karui was talking with a dark skinned, white-haired man who was sucking on what appeared to be candy. Tapping Shino's shoulder with his hand he got his team mate's attention.

"How long have we been traveling?"

"Ah, you're awake." Shino's tone was neither impressed nor excited, but that was just the way he was. "We lost you in those clouds a week ago, neither Hinata nor I could find you. After we contacted Team Samui, Hinata and I decided to split up, I would wait for you to make contact while she went ahead with the mission. After another scout group showed up to investigate the earthquake, we tracked it north up to the Pearl Lakes area, and from there I managed to pick up your trail."

"It wasn't hard to find you after that, you and Karui both have a talent for destruction." The unknown female voice from behind Kiba had a level quality, but there was a hint of disappointment to it. Kiba softly chuckled as he rested his head against Shino's back and fell back to sleep.

As sleep set in Kiba found himself in a vast field ringed by trees. Kneeling down Kiba swished his hand through the light mist that covered the ground and smiled as it moved in wisps and whirls. While kneeling several shapes appeared and walked towards him, one he immediately recognized as Akamaru. He scratched his dog's ears and neck before the dog tackled him and they rolled along the ground laughing. Others appeared, and Kiba recognized them as dogs from his family's kennel. Behind them stood his friends and family.

He raised his hand to shield his face when a stiff wind blew and he turned his face towards where the wind blew. In all directions shadows appeared in the distance, Kiba took comfort in the fact that there was no smell of danger. One of the shadows approached him and held out its hand. Rising, Kiba took the hand and stepped out of his unconscious.

The smooth hospital bed sheet felt good against his left hand. It hurt when he flexed his fingers, but the grains of his muscles felt right if a little sore. When he saw all the flowers in his room, the smell was almost too much for Kiba. From a corner of the room Akamaru barked and walked up to the side of the bed.

"How are you feeling today?" Shino said, without looking up from the newspaper he was reading.

"I'm fine." Kiba said with as much strength as he could manage. When he found the intravenous needle in his arm he took it out and sat up in bed. "What's with all the flowers Shino?"

"It's gratitude from the town."

"Gratitude?"

"Ah, it was decided to use the funds from the capture of the missing nin to help rebuild the town and the bridge."

"Wow, I never knew I was that generous."

"It was actually the idea of that girl you were with. Even wounded as she was, she wanted to manage the distribution of the funds herself."

"Any word from Hinata?"

"She finished the mission two days ago and had to return to Konoha to report our findings. She stayed long enough to see you were recovering, I think that girl makes her nervous."

"Karui." Kiba said as he turned his head to look out the window.

"Yeah, that's her name."

The nurse went into a fit when she walked in on the sight of Kiba dressing himself. Ignoring her instructions to sit back, Kiba found his personal clothes that Shino had found washed up on one of the lakes. Thankfully the waterproof bag had kept his jacket dry. His arms were still a little stiff when he put them through the sleeves, but it felt good to have it on.

Despite the doctor's objections, Kiba checked out of the hospital. Any hospital other than the one his sister ran felt strange, and he was glad to be back out in the open air.

"Hey Shino, would you mind waiting for me on the road south. There's something I want to do before I leave."

"Of course."

The city was alive and busy. Despite all the damage everyone had a smile on their face as they were rebuilding. Finding himself by the bridge, Kiba saw several surveyors and architects arguing over whether to rebuild the bridge or redesign it first. No longer in mission mode, Akamaru was wagging his tail and was excited by all the new smells and people. Barking out laughter, Akamaru turned to Kiba before running around a corner.

"Akamaru, wait-" The sound of laughter came from around the corner, Kiba recognized the voice. Akamaru had practically tackled Karui and was licking her face. She had wrapped her hands around the dog's head and was scratching behind his ears. Leaning against the wall, Kiba waited for Karui to realize he was standing there.

Sitting up, Karui patted Akamaru's head as she stood up. After facing Kiba, she leaned back into the wall beside him and looked out on the town.

"Have you heard about what I did with the reward money?"

"Yeah, and I approve Karui. These people didn't ask to be drawn into the fight."

"It's a new world Kiba. Not even ten years ago it would have been unthinkable for villages to be working alongside each other. That was the world Saito was from."

"In a way I feel sorry for him. There were a lot of changes in the wake of the third Shinobi War that many of the old guard couldn't deal with."

"I feel that it's not really so much of a change as a restoration of the old ways. A world where we make our future with our own hands. Like this village, working for a better tomorrow."

"You're pretty deep Karui." Kiba smiled when he saw she blush at that.

"There's something I want you to have Kiba." She stood away from the wall, and Kiba did the same. Pulling out an small envelope from her vest, she handed it to Kiba. "I'm managing the funds from the bounty on the rogue nins. Not all of it went to the village, I wanted you to have your share for helping out with saving Kumo." Opening the envelope Kiba gave a rough count of 80,000 ryo and whistled. She had a look on her face that seemed to say, 'Don't be generous, take the money.'

"Thank you Karui. It was… I mean we had kind of a rough time, didn't we?" For some reason Kiba felt both nervous and sad. "Say Karui-"

Karui handed Kiba a folded sheet of paper and said: "This is my address Kiba, if you have any questions about the reward, or about the rebuilding… you can write me."

Kiba unfolded the paper and fingered the letters. For some reason he remembered something his teacher Kurenai had mentioned in passing about the relationship between swordplay and penmanship when he looked at the elegant calligraphy. It spoke a lot about her character; she was strong and definitely wild, but every action of hers had a deliberate sort of passion to it.

"Would you mind if I write you just as a friend?" Surprising Kiba, she reached her hands up and started scratching his head.

Smiling as she leaned against the wall, she said: "I'd like that." Standing together they looked up at the clouds breaking in the late morning sky. It was going to be a beautiful sunny day.


End file.
